Bayern Munich vs Auckland City Prediction: Bayern huge favourites for opener

Bayern Munich and Auckland City will face off for the first time in their respective histories in their opening Club World Cup match on Sunday evening (17:00, live on Channel 5).

Bayern enter the competition as Bundesliga champions, while their opponents currently sit third in the New Zealand National League. Read on for my Bayern Munich vs Auckland City predictions, as well as the latest team news and match odds.

Team News

Bayern have a far superior squad at their disposal than Auckland so Vincent Kompany may not deploy his strongest XI for Munich's opening encounter.

Manuel Neuer is expected to start between the sticks, while Jonathan Tah and Eric Dier could start in the defence, with the likes of Dayot Upamecano featuring in the latter stages of the tournament.

Harry Kane is certain to appear, while Leroy Sane could be given a Bavarian send-off as his contract expires at the end of the month.

As for Auckland, Conor Tracey is expected to start in goal, protected by a defence consisting of Adam Bell, Nikko Boxall, Nathan Lobo and Adam Mitchell.

Myer Bevan and Joe Lee look likely to start in attack, with Gerard Garriga and Michael Den Heijer expected to start from the off in the engine room.

Bayern Munich vs Auckland City Odds

Unsurprisingly, the Bundesliga champions are massive favourites for Sunday's encounter at 1/150, giving them an implied win probability of 99.3%.

The draw can be backed at 33/1, and an Auckland City victory is currently available at 90/1.

Correct Score - Bayern Munich 4-0 @ 5/1

With Bayern's price to win the match so short, I've opted for a correct score prediction for Sunday's tussle.

The Betfred traders are clearly expecting a dominating display from Kompany's side, and it's hard to disagree. Bayern possess some of the most exciting players in Europe, with the likes of Harry Kane, Michael Olise and Jamal Musiala all capable of causing some damage.

Munich have won two Club World Cups previously, both times without conceding a goal and given the gulf in quality between the sides, I can see a high-scoring Bayern win here on matchday one.

The Bundesliga champions stuck four without reply past Hoffenheim on the final day of the domestic season, and they scored 99 goals in 34 games over the course of their title-winning campaign.

In addition, Bayern ended the season by winning four of their final five games without conceding.

Harry Kane to score 2+ goals @ 1/1

It's not surprising to see this pick such a short price either, but I still think it's good value at around even money.

The England skipper has scored 38 goals in 46 appearances across all competitions this term, as well as netting in both of the Three Lions' recent outings against Andorra and Senegal.

The former Spurs forward has opened the scoring in three of the last four games he's scored in, so perhaps that is worth a mention at 2/1, but given the disparity between the sides, I'm backing Kane to score two goals or more on Sunday.

Offers

Sunday: Place an In-Play single bet of £10 or more at odds of 1/2+ on any Club World Cup match played on Sunday and get £5 in Free Bets to use In-Play on Monday’s Club World Cup matches.

Acca Flex: Place a pre-match 5+ leg Football accumulator and get a CASH bonus up to 100% if all of your selections win or your money back as CASH if one leg lets you down.

Click here for the latest Football Odds

You can read all our latest Football Betting Tips at our dedicated Betfred Insights content hub