Saturday's Bundesliga predictions including Bayern Munich vs. Schalke 04

Bayern vs. Schalke (Saturday, 2.30pm)

Title-chasing Bayern Munich will be eager to avoid a potential banana skin when a revitalised Schalke 04 outfit visit the Allianz Arena on Saturday afternoon.

Fighting for their lives at the bottom end of the Bundesliga table, Schalke are bidding for a third victory on the spin, while Bayern remain one point clear of Borussia Dortmund at the summit.

We say: Bayern Munich 3-1 Schalke 04

Although Schalke have made vast improvements in recent weeks, we expect Bayern Munich to flex their muscles and take another step towards sealing an 11th Bundesliga title in as many years.

Union Berlin vs. Freiburg (Saturday, 2.30pm)

Fourth-placed Union Berlin and fifth-placed Freiburg are locked on 56 points ahead of their crucial Bundesliga showdown at Stadion An der Alten Forsterei on Saturday.

Both sides have recorded 16 wins, eight draws and seven losses this season, so an extra three points for either team would be huge as the race for Champions League football intensifies.

We say: Union Berlin 1-1 Freiburg

Union Berlin and Freiburg look set to play out a cagey draw in the German capital as both sides aim to avoid defeat and maintain their top-four bids.

Although Union have stuttered in recent weeks, Fischer's men are expected to extend their unbeaten run on home soil to 19 matches with a hard-fought draw on Saturday.

Frankfurt vs. Mainz (Saturday, 2.30pm)

Eintracht Frankfurt will be aiming to move above Mainz 05 in the Bundesliga table by beating them at Deutsch Bank Park on Saturday.

Mainz, meanwhile, could move level on points with sixth-placed Bayer Leverkusen should they return from Frankfurt with all three points.

We say: Eintracht Frankfurt 1-1 Mainz 05

Neither side head into this fixture in the greatest form across recent weeks, with only outside hopes of qualifying for Europe providing any real motivation for both sets of players.

Although Frankfurt arguably have greater individual quality, their league campaign has completely run out of steam, meaning we can envisage a share of the spoils with Mainz on Saturday.

Wolfsburg vs. Hoffenheim (Saturday, 2.30pm)

Hoffenheim could confirm their Bundesliga safety by beating Wolfsburg away from home on Saturday.

The hosts, meanwhile, would move above Bayer Leverkusen - who do not play until Sunday - into sixth place with a victory.

We say: Wolfsburg 1-2 Hoffenheim

Matarazzo is naming an extremely attacking starting XI at present, and we can envisage them out-gunning Wolfsburg at the Volkswagen Arena on Saturday.

Despite having European football to still contend for, the visitors' desperation for a victory is far greater given that they are not quite safe from the lingering fear of relegation, which is arguably the biggest motivation any footballer can have at the elite level of football.

VfL Bochum vs. Augsburg (Saturday, 2.30pm)

VfL Bochum will be looking to break out of the Bundesliga relegation zone when they entertain Augsburg at Vonovia Ruhrstadion on Saturday afternoon.

While the hosts find themselves two points from certain safety with three matches remaining, the visitors are six points clear of the bottom three.

We say: VfL Bochum 2-1 Augsburg

Given that Bochum must give everything that they have to stave off relegation, we expect the Blues to heap more away-day misery on Augsburg, who are on course to suffer a ninth defeat in 12 outings on the road.

Dortmund vs. Borussia M'bach (Saturday, 5.30pm)

Fresh from thrashing Wolfsburg 6-0, Borussia Dortmund will continue their pursuit of Bundesliga glory when Borussia Monchengladbach visit Signal Iduna Park on Saturday.

Sitting one point shy of table-topping Bayern Munich, BVB will be wary of the threat posed by Gladbach, who have been wildly unpredictable throughout this season.

We say: Borussia Dortmund 4-1 Borussia Monchengladbach

When you couple Dortmund's strong home form with Gladbach's woeful record on the road, all the signs point towards another convincing BVB win at Signal Iduna Park.

Given that Terzic's men have been firing in goals for fun on home soil, we can see Dortmund notching a high-scoring victory at the expense of the Foals.