RB Leipzig - Crvena Zvezda predictions and free betting tips [25/10/2023]

On Wednesday 25th of October as part of the Champions League 3rd tour, RB Leipzig will host Red Star Belgrade in their home stadium. The reigning champions of the Serbian Super League heroically drew 3 weeks ago against Young Boys, whereas "The Bulls" are determined to redeem themselves in front of their fans after a home fiasco against Man City.

Predicted Lineups

RB Leipzig: Gulasci; Klostermann, Simakan, Lukeba, Lenz; Schlager, Kampl; Forsberg, Olmo; Sesko, Werner.
Red Star Belgrade: Glazer; Mijailovic, Djiga, Dragovic, Rodic; Stameric, Hwang; Olayinka, Ivanic, Mitrovic; Ndiaye.

Stadium

The clash will take place in Leipzig at the Red Bull Arena.

RB Leipzig

RB Leipzig, along with Man City, are clear favourites to move into the play-offs. Despite all respect to Bellgrade club and Young Boys, Man City and The Bulls regularly participate in the final rounds of continental championships and have more qualified squads. Nonetheless, Marco Rose's pupils have been in poor form recently and went on an international break in October with three games without a win in all competitions, including a 1:3 defeat from Man City in the second round of the Champions League. The hosts were close to gaining a point: Openda responded to Phil Foden's goal in the debut of the second half, but late goals from Julian Alvarez and Jeremy Doku killed all intrigue. The Red-Whites managed to break the losing streak last weekend in the Bundesliga in Darmstadt (1:3).

In the tournament table, they are 5th, trailing the leading Bayer Leverkusen by 5 points. Despite rumours of a summer move to Barcelona, Spanish midfielder Dani Olmo returned to action last weekend and is sure to start on Wednesday. Rose may field Xavi Simons (on loan from PSG for the season, 3 goals, 4 assists in the league) and Openda (transferred from Lens, 6 goals this season, including a double last weekend) from the off. Slovenian striker Sesko (2 goals in the Bundesliga, a double against Finland during the international break) and experienced men Kampl (33 years old) and Raum (2 assists this season) are also ready to take their places in the lineup.

Red Star Belgrade

Having yet to claim any victory in the current European tournament, the Belgraders were close to creating a sensation in the first round at the Etihad Stadium. The Red-Whites opened the scoring at the very end of the first half, but then Man City fully engaged and responded with three goals (3:1). Two weeks later, the city dwellers finally managed to gain their first Champions League points - snatching a draw against Young Boys on their field thanks to a goal from Bukari (2:2).

The 9-time Serbian champions currently stand second in their league, and last week they triumphed in the 1/8 finals of the Serbian Cup against "Traljala Krusevac" (0:6), and on Saturday beat "Javor" with a score of 3:2 in the national championship. Despite dominating the Serbian Super League in recent years, winning the championship title six times in a row, they have been knocked out of the Champions League qualification in the last three seasons, not reaching the group stage.

Head to Head

These teams have never met before in history.

"RB Leipzig" vs "Red Star Belgrade" Match Prediction

RB Leipzig surpasses their opponent in all components and should effortlessly secure three points this Wednesday. The Bulls are motivated to redeem themselves in front of their fans after a disheartening slap-down by Man City, and regarding the players' selection, the hosts significantly beat the Serbian club. Red Star is not leading in their championship, and they only managed to draw with Young Boys towards the very end of the match. I see no premise for a sensation here and I'm betting on a host team victory with a handicap of -1.5.

Total prediction

Openda and Simons, who have scored 4 and 3 goals respectively in the Bundesliga, are in brilliant form. Slovenian forward Schick can also strengthen the game, not to mention experienced Werner and Poulsen. I'm confidently betting on the German team's individual total over 2.

Corner prediction

RB Leipzig is superior in class, playing at home, and will outperform in all key indicators, including corners (handicap -1.5).

Yellow Card Prediction

Red Star will have to commit many fouls to have even the slightest chance of keeping their posts "locked". In the two starting tours, the Belgraders earned 6 yellow cards – they will undoubtedly receive at least three cautions on Wednesday.

Score prediction

I'm backing a precise score of 3:0 in favour of RB Leipzig.