Bundesliga schedule and preview, Week 6: A Revierderby and away trips for the top 2

With Schalke at home and coming off their first Bundesliga win of the season, they’re not as big of underdogs in the Revierderby as they appeared to be a week ago. However, they’re still thin in defense and are working with a bit of a patchwork squad.

Because the Bundesliga doesn’t care about you, the league’s three most interesting games are all on at the exact same time. That means they’re on during a timeslot where American TV can only show one, and they’ve chosen the Bayern match over the Revierderby. These three games are also on during a time when BT Sport in the UK has other obligations, so they won’t be showing the games either. Bad Bundesliga. BAD.

Saturday, 9:30 a.m. ET

Recent Revierderbies have made little sense, with away teams and the team entering the game in inferior form pulling off wins regularly. Adding to the unpredictability of this edition of Germany’s fiercest rivalry is the long injury list that both teams are dealing with.

On paper, Dortmund have the much better side, and probably shouldn’t be losing to this average Schalke team even on the road. But Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Max Meyer have shown the ability to strike for Schalke at any time, and could nick a goal or three on the counter if Dortmund are a bit too ambitious.

Saturday, 9:30 a.m. ET | TV: GolTV (US and Canada)

Köln have a strong defense and a young star between the sticks in Timo Horn, but it’s difficult to envision them scoring goals against Bayern Munich. They only have two this season and both came in one game, against a very poor Stuttgart team. Otherwise, they have three 0-0 draws and lost 1-0 midweek away to a very solid Hannover team.

So Köln aren’t going to get embarrassed, but they’re not really going to challenge Bayern either. Expect the Bavarians to win 1-0 or 2-0, and look extremely comfortable doing it.

Saturday, 9:30 a.m. ET

If recent results from both teams are any indication, this could be a bit of a shootout. Freiburg have already conceded nine goals this season, while Bayer have both the best attack and one of the worst defenses in the division. Freiburg’s last two matches are a 2-2 and 3-3 draw, while Bayer -- despite a strange 1-0 win midweek -- have been involved in plenty of defenseless games this year.

Bayer are favorites away to the league’s 15th-placed team, but Freiburg hasn’t lost at home yet. Expect something like a one-goal win for Bayer with goals for both sides.

Full schedule (all times ET)