Xabi Alonso turned Bayer Leverkusen from a team battling relegation at the start of the season into a club fighting for a top-six place.
On Sunday, Leverkusen will welcome RB Leipzig to the BayArena for a top-six clash. Bayer are sixth in the league with 44 points, seven points off the Champions League qualification places.
Unstoppable. 🔥 #UEL https://t.co/GgcYnB3DZV— Bayer 04 Leverkusen (@bayer04_en) April 20, 2023
Unstoppable. 🔥 #UEL https://t.co/GgcYnB3DZV
RB Leipzig are the team Bayer Leverkusen are chasing. Leipzig are fourth with 51 points. Die Roten are eight points off first-place Bayern Munich. Despite being so close to the top of the table, Marco Rose’s team must focus on holding off Freiburg and Bayer Leverkusen in the top-four race.
Leipzig won 2-0 against Bayer Leverkusen in the reverse fixture. Christopher Nkunku opened the scoring on 32 minutes and Timo Werner sealed the win with a goal in the final seven minutes of the match.
Bayer Leverkusen do not play well against RB Leipzig traditionally. Leverkusen have won just two matches in the teams’ 13 head-to-head meetings since 2016. Leipzig won seven of those 13 fixtures while four ended in draws. Could this be Bayer Leverkusen’s time for a rare win over Leipzig?
Alonso’s Leverkusen will be coming off a Europa League quarterfinal second-leg match against Union Saint-Gilloise. Leipzig, on the other hand, will be fresh and rested going into the match.
Leverkusen are the Bundesliga’s in-form team. They took 16 points out of the last 18 points available, scoring 15 goals and conceding five times. The Company XI are on a three-match home win streak.
RB Leipzig slumped recently but are on a two-match win streak. Die Roten Bullen took nine points from the last six matches in the division. They struggled to score goals, with just eight goals tallied. Meanwhile, Leipzig conceded eight times.
The Energy drink-fuelled team haven’t played well away from home. They have a record of 5W-4D-5L on their travels in the Bundesliga.
Three players are set to miss the match for Bayer, as striker Patrik Schick, backup goalkeeper Andrey Lunev, and midfielder Charles Aranguiz are all ruled out through injury.
Rose will be without full-back David Raum due to a suspension. Adding to his defensive issues is the injury to defender Mohamed Simaken. He could miss the match.
Midfielder Emil Forsberg may miss the game following an illness. Striker Yussuf Poulsen is a major doubt with a calf injury, and midfielder Xaver Schlager is unlikely to play following a ligament injury.
Despite the personnel issues, RB Leipzig should post an away win over Bayer 2-1. Leverkusen should struggle after playing on Thursday night in the Europa League, allowing RB Leipzig to continue their dominance in head-to-head matches.