Bayer Leverkusen vs RB Leipzig Preview & Prediction | 2024-25 German Bundesliga
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Another late show from Bayer Leverkusen saw the reigning champions begin their title defence with victory, whilst RB Leipzig represent a formidable early barrier for Xabi Alonso’s side to overcome.
KICK-OFF DATE/TIME: Saturday August 31st 2024: UK – 5:30pm / US ET – 12:30pm / US PT – 9:30am
HOW TO WATCH ON TV: UK – Sky Sports / US – Some matches will be televised on ESPN channels so it is worth checking their schedules
HOW TO WATCH ONLINE: UK – Sky Go / US – ESPN+
BAYER LEVERKUSEN PREVIEW: ANOTHER STOPPAGE TIME STUNNER BREAKS GLADBACH HEARTS
A cornerstone of Bayer Leverkusen’s remarkable success last season was their penchant for scoring late goals and when we say late goals, we mean extraordinarily late. That’s why it was fitting for them to begin their reign as unbeaten Bundesliga champions with a winning goal in the 11th minute of second half stoppage time to beat Borussia Monchengladbach 2-3 on the road.
It was Florian Wirtz who struck the decisive blow via a rebound after his initial penalty was saved by Jonas Omlin. This served as the perfect follow-up to their DFL-Supercup triumph which saw them salvage a 2-2 draw with two minutes of normal time remaining against Stuttgart, ultimately winning on penalties.
RB LEIPZIG PREVIEW: TEN-MEN LEIPZIG START WITH HARD-FOUGHT VICTORY
RB Leipzig certainly didn’t make it easy for themselves in what should’ve been a fairly straightforward first league fixture of 2024-25 at home to Bochum. It took them just short of an hour to finally break the deadlock, Norwegian Antonio Nusa coming off the bench to score on his Bundesliga debut.
But a red card issued to RB Leipzig captain Willi Orban turned the game on its head and left Marco Rose’s men on the back foot. Forced to dig in rather than push for more goals, Leipzig deserve credit in the end for holding on and securing the three points.
BAYER LEVERKUSEN TEAM NEWS: KOVAR LIKELY TO DEPUTISE FOR HRADECKY
Bayer Leverkusen will be without their captain and first-choice goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky through illness, meaning that back-up stopper Matej Kovar would take his place. Xabi Alonso may also have an issue in central midfield with Robert Andrich doubtful and Exequiel Palacios out.
PREDICTED XI: (3-4-3): Kovar; Tapsoba, Tah, Hincapie; Frimpong, Xhaka, Garcia, Grimaldo; Hofmann, Boniface, Wirtz
UNAVAILABLE: Hradecky (Ill), Palacios (Injured)
QUESTIONABLE: Anrich (Injured)
RB LEIPZIG TEAM NEWS: CAPTAIN ORBAN SUSPENDED AFTER RED CARD
Following his sending off last weekend, centre-back and skipper Willi Orban will have to watch this one in the stands with him being suspended. Therefore, Klostermannn and Castello Lukeba should be the pairing that Marco Rose opts for with Henrichs and Raum completing the back four.
PREDICTED XI: (4-2-2-2): Gulacsi; Henrichs, Klostermann, Lukeba, Raum; Seiwald, Haidara; Nusa, Xavi Simons; Openda, Sesko
UNAVAILABLE: Orban (Suspended), Ouedraogo (Injured), Schlager (Injured)
QUESTIONABLE: Bitshiau (Injured)
BAYER LEVERKUSEN VS RB LEIPZIG PREDICTION
Bayer Leverkusen being without their goalkeeper and RB Leipzig not having their first-choice centre-back immediately puts both at a disadvantage in regards to keeping the opposition at bay. Their respective leadership skills will also be missed and could help turn this into an exciting battle between two teams with significant offensive firepower both in midfield and upfront.
Leverkusen are always safe bets to score, but keeping clean sheets has been an issue for them so far in this campaign and with the pace of Sesko and creative quality of Xavi Simons, it’s hard not to see RB Leipzig hurting the hosts. Therefore, expect both teams to score in a match that sees attack dominate defence and over 2.5 goals is also well worth backing.
BAYER LEVERKUSEN VS RB LEIPZIG TIP: BOTH TEAMS TO SCORE AND OVER 2.5 GOALS
