Bayer Leverkusen vs Werder Bremen
After weeks of anticipation as Xabi Alonso’s side streaked away from the chasing pack, the day is surely here. If Bayer beat Werder Bremen on Sunday, they will be crowned Bundesliga champions, at least 16 points clear with just five games remaining.
FC Bayern and VfB Stuttgart are battling it out for second place with RB Leipzig and Borussia Dortmund fighting for fourth, but the Bundesliga 2024 betting odds handed the title to Die Werkself some weeks ago.
Alonso’s side is yet to lose a match in all competitions this season, and they are about to end Bayern’s 11-year reign as kings of Germany, though Borussia Dortmund pushed the Bavarians all the way last term.
Bremen manager Ole Werner knows he has a virtually impossible task on Sunday, but his team needs a win after having picked up just two points from the last six league games.
Werder Bremen drew 1-1 away to Eintracht Frankfurt to end a run of four defeats last week, while Leverkusen won 1-0 away to Union Berlin. And on Thursday, Die Werkself beat West Ham United in the Europa League.
Talking Points
How far can Alonso take Bayer?
Leverkusen head coach Alonso is on the cusp of winning at least one major trophy in his first campaign as a manager. His stunning success has seen him linked with the vacant jobs at Bayern Munich and his old club Liverpool, but he recently confirmed he’ll be at the BayArena next season to lead Die Werkself into the Champions League.
As well as winning the Bundesliga, Leverkusen have just been installed as hot favourites to win the Europa League following Atalanta’s; 3-0 win over Liverpool at Anfield. And in May, Die Werkself have a DFB Pokal final against Bundesliga 2 side Kaiserslautern to look forward to.
A treble in his first season is on the cards for Alonso.
His team is playing with such belief and quality it’s hard to see them losing a game this season. While David Moyes’ Hammers pushed them hard on Thursday, Leverkusen’s superiority finally told and goals from Jonas Hofmann and top scorer Victor Boniface gave them a comfortable first leg lead.
Left wing-back Alex Grimaldo has had a superb campaign with nine goals and 11 assists, while the highly rated Florian Wirtz has chipped in with eight goals and eight assists.
A recent 3-2 win away to SC Freiburg saw Grimaldo and Wirtz combine to open the scoring and, with the likes of Jeremie Frimpong, Patrick Schick, and Natha Tella all in great form, this is a team full of goals and brimming with confidence.
Fine margins have been costly for Werder
Bremen’s recent Bundesliga 2024 results have been pretty poor, and Werner’s team has dropped to 12th in the table with an eight-point cushion over the bottom three. And while they are not really in relegation danger, the slide has been frustrating, particularly as Die Werderaner have been competitive in all their recent games.
Bremen lost three matches on the bounce by the odd goal in three, including a 2-1 loss to Borussia Dortmund. But following a 2-0 defeat to Wolfsburg, Werner’s men finally picked up a point with a 1-1 draw in Frankfurt, with Milos Veljkovic bagging the Werder goal. The result came at a cost though as Danish defender Jens Stage was red carded and will miss the clash with Leverkusen.
If Werder do manage to get out of their own half, they will look for top scorer, Marvin Ducksch, who has nine goals and five assists. The big striker will do his best to hold up play and give the Werkself defence plenty to think about.
History
These two teams have been well matched over the years, and Bremen have the slightest edge in the head-to-heads with 23 wins from the last 66 encounters to Bayer’s 21, and there have been 22 draws.
It’s no surprise that Leverkusen won the return match by a 3-0 scoreline back in November, and Bayer have not lost at home to Bremen in their last three meetings at the BayArena.
Recent form could hardly be more contrasting. Die Werkself have won the last seven, while Werder haven’t won in seven. And Bayer’s home record this season reads 12 wins and two draws, so what price for a lucky 13?
Betting Tip
Well, the hosts are at a SBOTOP price of 1.18 to win this game with Werder at 10.50 and the draw at 6.20, while a correct scoreline of 3-0 is at 6.90. The BayArena will be bouncing on Sunday, and the anticipation could be unbearable. But then I suspect at the final whistle there will be a party to end all parties.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR (⭐) BETS ARE WORTH:
⭐⭐⭐= €20 (HIGHLY CONFIDENT)
⭐⭐= €10 (CONFIDENT))
⭐= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT)
Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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