Spectacle in Leverkusen?
The top match of matchday 16 in the Bundesliga will definitely take place at the BayArena on Wednesday evening. There, third-placed Leverkusen and their immediate rivals Hoffenheim will face each other in a direct duel. For the first time ever in their joint Bundesliga history, the two teams are ranked among the top four in the standings before a direct clash.
For this reason, among others, we are looking forward to a fast and lively football match between two teams that have so far been convincing offensively across the board and have their weaknesses more on the defensive side. In the top half of the table, no club has conceded more goals than Bayer and TSG. Between Leverkusen and Hoffenheim, the first prediction therefore goes in the direction of many goals, probably even on both sides.
If we believe the odds on the outcome of the match between Leverkusen and Hoffenheim, then the favourites are the Rhinelanders, who were shown their limits on Sunday in Frankfurt despite a 2-0 lead and suffered a serious setback. The Kraichgauer now have four Bundesliga victories in a row and are bursting with self-confidence. Will the Hoeneß team’s run of success now continue?
Leverkusen – statistics & current form
Bayer Leverkusen are going through a real rollercoaster of emotions this season, even though the moving wagons are usually at the top rather than the bottom. Translated into football language, this means nothing other than that the young Werkself sometimes simply lacks the necessary consistency to regularly bring its enormous potential and performance onto the pitch.
The best example was Sunday’s away match in Frankfurt, when the Rhinelanders started like the fire brigade and quickly took a 2:0 lead through two Schick goals. What then followed, however, was a demonstration of power by Eintracht, who turned the game around and played a completely disillusioned Leverkusen side to the wall with a score of 5:2. Instead of pulling away from the competition in the standings, Seoane’s team is threatening to give up its Champions League place before Christmas.
After a poor game, another reaction?
Hope for a positive result on Wednesday evening is at least given the statistic that Bayer have never lost two Bundesliga games in a row this season under Seoane. The home record has also been significantly improved recently. While the first six matches in front of a home crowd yielded a total of only six points, the same number of points was recorded in the two most recent appearances at home.
Nevertheless, the weak point of the current third-placed team is still its own defence. Of the first eleven teams in the Bundesliga, keeper Hradecky has had to make the most saves. In the last 15 seasons, the Rhinelanders have only conceded more goals once at this point in the season. In total, they have already conceded 24 goals.
So it seems relatively unlikely that they will be able to keep a clean sheet against Hoffenheim on Wednesday evening. Coach Seoane will have to do without the suspended Frimpong. Florian Wirtz is also unlikely to play, as he took a severe blow to the knee at the weekend. Patrick Schick, who has scored an incredible 14 goals in twelve games this season, will be all the more important.
Predicted Leverkusen line-up:
Hradecky – Kossounou, Tah, Tapsoba, Hincapie – Andrich, Demirbay – Diaby, Wirtz, Adli – Schick
Last matches played by Leverkusen:
1st Bundesliga
12/12 2021 – Eintracht Frankfurt 5 – 2 Bayer Leverkusen
Europa League Grp. G
12/09 2021 – Ferencvaros 1 – 0 Bayer Leverkusen
1st Bundesliga
12/04 2021 – Bayer Leverkusen 7 – 1 Greuther Fürth
11/28 2021 – RB Leipzig 1 – 3 Bayer Leverkusen
Europa League Grp. G
11/25 2021 – Bayer Leverkusen 3 – 2 Celtic Glasgow
Hoffenheim – Statistics & current form
The TSG Hoffenheim is playing a very strong season so far, which admittedly was not necessarily expected in this form. However, because the Kraichgauers placed their trust in their coach Sebastian Hoeneß, who was criticised several times last season, they are now benefiting from exactly that. The former Bayern II coach’s concept seems very mature in terms of play and the players also seem to feel extremely comfortable on the pitch.
This, in turn, is also reflected in the results, as the most recent four Bundesliga matches were all victorious. TSG have only managed to do this twice in their own history in the top flight. Just how confident 1899 are at the moment was underlined by the last-minute goal in the 2-1 away win in Freiburg at the weekend, which saw the Blue-Whites jump up to fourth place in the table.
Hoffenheim build on the final quarter of an hour
Similarly to their upcoming opponents from Leverkusen, TSG’s biggest strength is their offence. 32 goals in 15 games is not only the fourth best value in the league, but also more than two goals per game on average. However, the bold approach is often at the expense of the defence, which has already conceded 23 goals. In the last three matches involving the Kraichgauer alone, 17 goals were scored, which is why it could make sense to look at the odds on the over 3.5 between Leverkusen and Hoffenheim.
The inferred good fitness could become a potentially decisive factor in an English week, so the Leverkusen vs Hoffenheim prediction on the away treble is also blessed with value. Bicakcic, Skov, Bruun Larsen and John are still in hospital.
Predicted Hoffenheim line-up:
Baumann – Posch, Vogt, C. Richards – Kaderabek, Raum – Geiger, Samassekou – Kramaric – Bebou, Rutter
Last matches played by Hoffenheim:
1st Bundesliga
12/11 2021 – SC Freiburg 1 – 2 Hoffenheim
12/04 2021 – Hoffenheim 3 – 2 Eintracht Frankfurt
11/27 2021 – Greuther Fürth 3 – 6 Hoffenheim
11/20 2021 – Hoffenheim 2 – 0 RB Leipzig
11/06 2021 – Vfl Bochum 2 – 0 Hoffenheim
Leverkusen – Hoffenheim Direct Comparison / H2H Balance
This is the 27th time that Leverkusen have played Hoffenheim in the Bundesliga. The Rhinelanders have won 15 times so far, while TSG have only managed to win six of their matches. Only against FC Bayern do the Kraichgauer have a weaker record. Nevertheless, the direct comparison must be viewed in a differentiated way, because the Werkself has only won two of the past eleven direct duels (four draws, five defeats). Incidentally, four of the last eight encounters have ended with a score of 4:1. Will there be as many goals again on Wednesday evening?
Leverkusen – Hoffenheim tip
The third-placed team receives the fourth-placed team. On the penultimate matchday of the first half of the season, football fans in the Bundesliga can once again look forward to a real top match. Leverkusen welcomes Hoffenheim. The betting odds are clearly in favour of the home side, despite the fact that the Werkself suffered a major setback at the weekend with a 2:5 defeat in Frankfurt.
Apart from that, it is not a particularly good idea to bet against the Kraichgauer at the moment, as coach Sebastian Hoeneß’ team has recently won four in a row and is something like the “team of the moment” in the top flight. Incidentally, in the last eleven direct duels, the South Germans have only left the pitch as losers twice.
In the end, however, we refrain from predicting the outcome of the match, but instead try to predict that both teams will score at least once between Leverkusen and Hoffenheim. Although only 1.49 is offered for this at the top, we are still pretty sure that no offensive will go empty-handed on Wednesday night.
If you want to play at higher odds, you can go for the over 3.5. Alternatively, it is conceivable to bet that the visitors, who are in such good form, will score in both halves.
