Fresh from booking their place in the UEFA Europa League semi-finals, Bayer Leverkusen return to Bundesliga action with a home fixture against RB Leipzig this weekend.
The two sides are separated by seven points in the standings, with sixth-placed Leverkusen trailing fourth-placed Leipzig, adding extra spice to Sunday's showdown.
Match preview
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Bayer Leverkusen punched their ticket to the last four of the Europa League with a resounding 4-1 victory at Belgian club Union SG on Thursday, advancing thanks to a 5-2 aggregate win overall.
Xabi Alonso's men will face Jose Mourinho's Roma in the semi-finals after the Italian side dispatched Feyenoord, but Leverkusen will be eager to continue their ascent of the Bundesliga table before resuming their European campaign.
Having avoided defeat in each of their last seven league games – notching five straight wins before last weekend's goalless draw at Wolfsburg – Bayer Leverkusen find themselves in the top six for the first time this season.
When you look at the bigger picture, Alonso has overseen a run of three defeats in 16 Bundesliga matches, with Die Werkself collecting 11 wins during that period.
Having scored at least two goals in 12 of their previous 15 outings across all competitions – netting at least three goals on seven occasions – Leverkusen will be confident of closing the gap on RB Leipzig this weekend.
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The Red Bulls head into Sunday's clash on a three-game winning streak, with a DFB-Pokal triumph over Borussia Dortmund preceding Bundesliga victories over Hertha Berlin and Augsburg.
After conceding inside five minutes against Augsburg last weekend, Leipzig responded by firing in three goals before half time, with Timo Werner bagging a brace to help his team secure a 3-2 victory on home soil.
While Leverkusen's European journey continues, Leipzig's Champions League campaign came to an abrupt end at the hands of Manchester City and Erling Braut Haaland, who scored five goals in last month's 7-0 thrashing at the Etihad Stadium.
That defeat came during a run of four losses in five matches for Marco Rose's men, highlighting Leipzig's inconsistency before the recent upturn, so the Saxony outfit will be eager to maintain their current form.
Although the Red Bulls have lost just four of their last 21 Bundesliga clashes – picking up 13 wins along the way – all of those defeats have come in their previous nine outings.
Team News
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Bayer Leverkusen are still without Patrik Schick as the Czech striker continues to nurse a groin injury, so the ex-RB Leipzig man will not be able to face his former club this time around.
After scoring in the midweek Europa League triumph, Adam Hlozek and Moussa Diaby will continue in attack for the hosts, whose starting XI is also expected to feature Florian Wirtz.
With backup goalkeeper Andrey Lunev sidelined due to a back injury, Lukas Hradecky will retain his place between the sticks, while Patrick Pentz will remain on the bench.
The visitors have goalkeeper issues of their own, with Janis Blaswich set to continue as RB Leipzig's first-choice stopper as Peter Gulacsi continues to recover from a knee injury.
Leipzig will also be without the injured trio of Yussuf Poulsen, David Raum and Xaver Schlager for the foreseeable future, while Emil Forsberg and Mohamed Simakan are doubts for Sunday's clash.
Timo Werner will continue to lead the line after netting a double last weekend, with Dani Olmo and Dominik Szoboszlai expected to join Werner in attack.
Bayer Leverkusen possible starting lineup:
Hradecky; Tapsoba, Tah, Hincapie; Frimpong, Amiri, Andrich, Bakker; Diaby, Wirtz; Hlozek
RB Leipzig possible starting lineup:
Blaswich; Klostermann, Orban, Gvardiol; Henrichs, Kampl, Haidara, Raum; Szoboszlai, Werner, Olmo
We say: Bayer Leverkusen 2-1 RB Leipzig
We expect Bayer Leverkusen to extend their unbeaten run to 13 matches in all competitions with a hard-fought victory over RB Leipzig, who look set to suffer a third defeat in four Bundesliga away games.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Ben Morris
