Does the Werkself slip deeper into crisis?
If you look back at this millennium, the Werkself from Leverkusen is the third German power in football. Several vice-championship titles and the sometimes quite good performance in the Champions League speak for themselves.
But most of the major successes date back to the beginning of this millennium. Leverkusen is now known to the neutral football fan as the team that does not play to its full potential. And that is exactly how the current season has gone so far. Having started the season with a squad that was as strong as an ox and, above all, held together, the team of Swiss coach Gerardo Seoane has already suffered a number of bitter defeats.
The team suffered a bitter defeat last weekend when they lost to their favourite opponents Augsburg. They hadn’t lost to the Fuggerstädter for more than 20 games until last Saturday and the 1:2. On the first matchday they already lost against BVB with 0:1 and in the cup they are already out after a 3:4 against the third division team Elversberg. The Werkself desperately needs a turnaround and placing a bet on the hosts in Leverkusen vs. Hoffenheim is something for all those who believe in it.
Things are clearly going better at Hoffenheim. TSG won against Bochum on the last matchday with 3:2 in the 88th minute of the game. Overall, even a 0:2 was turned around and the victory was extremely emotional. With the new coach Breitenreiter, TSG seems to have a great team spirit and a match on eye level is expected due to the good form of the guests. Kick-off for the Bundesliga match is at 15:30 on Saturday at the BayArena.
Leverkusen – Statistics & current form
Two of the Werkself’s key players were extremely in focus before the season. Top striker Patrik Schick and world-class left winger Moussa Diaby. Both were retained, which was seen as a great success both internally and externally. Leverkusen are also entering their second season under coach Seoane, who after all had led the team back to the Champions League.
Before the season, Leverkusen’s chest looked extremely broad and some even believed the team could upset Bayern. Before Leverkusen vs. Hoffenheim, however, making a prediction on a Leverkusen championship with the bookmakers is something for fantasists.
Lack of finishing and shaky defence
Leverkusen got off to the worst possible start to the season. For the first time in the club’s history, all three opening games were lost. For the first time since the 18/19 season, they lost their first two games in the league. In the end, they still finished fourth, which is the minimum target this season. One of the main reasons for the misery is the lack of finishing up front.
Even world-class striker and European Championship top scorer Patrick Schick recently missed huge chances. A goal by Schick in Leverkusen vs. Hoffenheim provides odds in the range of 1.70. Certainly an option, since the excellent attacker’s knot has to burst at some point. He has already scored four times against Hoffenheim in his career.
There is also room for improvement in Leverkusen’s back line, which has been subterranean so far. Too many coordination problems and individual mistakes led to unnecessary goals against. But it is a fact: If Leverkusen had used even a fraction of the many big chances, they would certainly not be without a point now. Coach Seoane also said that, considering the pure performance in the two BL games, there was no need to panic. But the results must also be right at some point.
Foundation for turnaround is there
In order to improve this again, the Werkself would urgently need Bellarabi and Adli, as both are constant troublemakers on the wings. But both players are missing for the time being due to injury. Nevertheless, the squad is still extremely strong and the quality to win against Hoffenheim is there. The motivation of the Werkself should also be at its maximum on Saturday. For only the second time in the club’s history, they start a Bundesliga match from last place in the table. One reason for hope is the interesting “Expected Goals” statistic.
The Bayer eleven shot 32 times at the opponent’s goal and scored only one goal. The high-quality statistic actually shows 3.9 goals for Seoane’s team, which should have been scored due to the quality of the chances. In view of these facts, a bet on a few goals is worth considering for Leverkusen vs Hoffenheim. The prerequisite, however, is that the Bayer eleven finally drinks target water again. Besides Bellarabi and Adli, Wirtz is still missing for the hosts due to his cruciate ligament rupture.
Predicted Leverkusen line-up:
Hradecky – Frimpong, Tah, Tapsoba, Hincapie – Andrich, C. Aranguiz – Diaby, Azmoun, Hlozek – Schick
Last matches played by Leverkusen:
Bundesliga
13/08/2022 – Bayer Leverkusen 1 – 2 Augsburg
06/08/2022 – Borussia Dortmund 1 – 0 Bayer Leverkusen
DFB Cup
30/07/2022 – Elversberg 4 – 3 Bayer Leverkusen
Friendly club matches
21/07/2022 – Udinese 1 – 2 Bayer Leverkusen
17/07/2022 – Bayer Leverkusen 0 – 0 Panathinaikos
Hoffenheim – Statistics & current form
Soccer lives on its emotions. Not an empty phrase, but reality. The visitors from Hoffenheim should be extremely emotional after their triumph against Bochum. After an early 0:2, they beat the men from the Ruhr with a late goal in the 88th minute to win 3:2. In between, star striker Andre Kramaric had missed a penalty. TSG’s triumph last weekend was highly deserved and makes you want more.
New coach, new luck
The victory was also necessary after the opening defeat against the Foals from Gladbach and has of course now lifted the mood considerably. But already in the preparation, Hoffenheim looked relaxed and determined at the same time.
Boss Dietmar Hopp demanded sixth place or better from his men. Now, coach Breitenreiter, who has just won the Swiss championship with Zurich, is expected to deliver. The former Paderborn coach is certainly to be trusted.
Breitenreiter wants to uncover the potential that the squad undoubtedly possesses. The morale is already right, on the last matchday TSG came back from a 0:2 deficit for the fifth time in the club’s history. Only the great FC Bayern managed this more often.
In the league clash Leverkusen vs. Hoffenheim, betting odds in the range of 4.20 are offered for a TSG win. These are very interesting considering the overall situation. However, one should not forget with all the Hoffenheim glory that Leverkusen is a sleeping giant.
The Kraichgauers have also scored four times up front so far this season. With Jhon Cordoba, they would still like to sign a real nine. In addition to the fine technicians in the offensive, the former Herthaner could bring a physical presence to opposing penalty areas. Whether with or without Cordoba: Hoffenheim are in good form and are certainly expecting something at the BayArena. The visitors are still without Hübner, Bicakcic and Pentke due to injury.
Predicted line-up of Hoffenheim:
Baumann – Kabak, Vogt, Nsoki – Kaderabek, Angelino – Samassekou – Prömel, Baumgartner – Kramaric, Bruun Larsen
Last matches played by Hoffenheim:
Bundesliga
13/08/2022 – Hoffenheim 3 – 2 VfL Bochum
06/08/2022 – Gladbach 3 – 1 Hoffenheim
DFB Cup
31/07/2022 – SV Rödinghausen 0 – 2 Hoffenheim
Friendly club matches
23/07/2022 – Hoffenheim 3 – 2 Verona
16/07/2022 – Salernitana 2 – 2 Hoffenheim
Leverkusen – Hoffenheim Direct comparison / H2H-balance
Leverkusen have won a total of 16 of 28 Bundesliga games against TSG. With 1.93 points per game, they have the second best record against Bundesliga teams. Only against Augsburg do they score better, which is certainly not a good omen after last weekend.
In all 29 games, including one in the DFB Cup, Hoffenheim won seven times. Six times there was a draw. Last season, Leverkusen won 4:2 in the Kraichgau and played 2:2 in front of their home crowd. The offensive power on both sides in Leverkusen vs. Hoffenheim after a forecast for many goals. After all, the defenses of both Bundesliga clubs are anything but saddle-fast either.
Leverkusen – Hoffenheim Tip
Leverkusen are in crisis, but have strong quality and did not show bad performances per se in the Bundesliga games. A lack of finishing and luck in the game prevented them from winning points. Hoffenheim travel to the BayArena with a broad chest after a 3:2 last-minute win against Bochum.
A match of equals can be expected, so betting on one of the two teams is not the best of all options. Even if a bet on Hoffenheim is tempting because of the lucrative odds, we decide otherwise. A high-scoring match is likely, so we look at the odds for many goals in Leverkusen vs. Hoffenheim.
Bayer’s defence has been shaky lately and Hoffenheim have conceded five goals already. Up front, both teams play excellently on the wings and create an extremely large number of chances. In the two games last season, a total of ten goals were scored. All in all, we can expect a high-scoring match under the Bayers’ cross.
