No let up on the Leverkusen train
Unstoppable Bayer Leverkusen welcome the test of sixth placed Wolfsburg on Tuesday evening, in a match that will be somewhat overshadowed by the Der Klassiker happening simultaneously. The hosts shocked many and demonstrated their capabilities in one of the standout fixtures of the weekend, a 3-1 win at Borussia-Park. The golden boy of German football Kai Havertz grabbed his sides’ first two goals for the second match in a row, the forward is now skippering the team aged just 20. Bayer are strong favourites to get the win but at worthy odds, they will look to undo Wolfsburg’s solidarity just as fellow top four outfit Borussia Dortmund did on Saturday.
Last time out
Unfancied Leverkusen performed brilliantly to press on towards Champions League qualification, Havertz got the opener assisted by ever-consistent winger Karim Bellarabi and then his second the other side of half time from the penalty spot shortly after Marcus Thuram had levelled proceedings. It was not a convincing spot kick; Yann Sommer got a very strong hand to it and was desperately unlucky not to keep it out. Sven Bender put the seal on the win and continued to show how pivotal his experience could be in the remaining run-in.
The Wolves were not the first team to fall to the brilliance of Dortmund’s attacking wingbacks Achraf Hakimi and Raphael Guerreiro, the widemen scoring both either side of half time as the title contenders were 2-0 victors at the Volkswagen Arena. Tuesday’s visitors’ biggest chance fell at the feet of creative midfielder Renato Steffen who saw his powerful shot flick off the top of the bar with the goal and Roman Burki at his mercy, relinquishing the chance to equalise.
Key man
Since the winter break precocious talent Havertz has scored eight and assisted four from 10 matches, compared to two strikes and one lay on from the 14 appearances that preceded this form. This purple patch will not last forever but has shown no signs of letting up since the resumption of the Bundesliga, especially with the amount of chances the likes of Kerem Demirbay, Moussa Diaby and Karim Bellarabi are producing.
The hosts have scored seven goals in their last two and arguably even more impressively carved out chances equating to 5.78 expected goals in the process. With the reliable budding partnership of Sven Bender and Edmund Tapsoba at the back, posting those figures in chance creation gives them a brilliant opportunity to keep outscoring teams and maybe even slip under the radar into a late title push. They could cut the gap between them and league leaders Bayern Munich to five points with victory, which would be their 12th in 13 outings.
Wolfsburg are top of the best of the rest league, 13 points behind Borussia Monchengladbach in fifth, they will compete but ultimately Peter Bosz’s men have too much quality.
Post bet chat Marcus's Tips:
Ragged Leverkusen slumped to a 4-1 defeat.