On Thursday, 9th November, as part of the 4th round of the Europa League group stage, "Qarabag" will host "Bayer Leverkusen" on their own turf. The home team is trailing the Bundesliga leader by just three points, so in case of a win, the Azerbaijani club can feasibly ensure their place in the top two.
"Qarabag": Lunev; Bayramov; Mustafazada, Medina, Cafarquiliyev; Jankovic, Romao; L.Andrade, Benzia, Zoubir; Juninho.
"Bayer Leverkusen": Kovar; Stanisic, Tapsoba, Hincapie, Grimaldo; Xhaka, Andrich; Tella, Wirtz, Adli; Hlozek.
The clash will take place in Baku at the Azersan stadium.
"Qarabag" is a constant participant in European cups, but rarely realises its ambitions due to the lack of competition in their championship throughout the season. In the national championship, the club is trailing "Zira" (23 points) by just a point, despite a home victory against "Kapaz" with a score of 7:1 last weekend. In the Europa League, the hosts won two opening matches against "Molde" (1:0) and "Hekken" (0:1), - all decisive goals were scored solely in the second half of each match, - but then suffered a heavy defeat of 5:1 from their German colleagues.
As a result, the team ranks second in quartet H with 6 collected points. Furthermore, the black-and-whites did not lose a single home Europa League match in last season’s group stage, taking points from Nantes, Olympiacos and Freiburg, respectively. "Qarabag" does not have any personnel problems.
Leverkusen, coached by Xabi Alonso, are virtually impervious this season and are a sight for the eyes of football fans worldwide. The "Pharmacists" have not suffered a single defeat in 16 matches in all competitions since the start of the campaign and only once achieved a draw with Bayern in the championship (2:2). Bundesliga leaders barely overcame Hoffenheim (2:3) last weekend, while in the Europa League, they rank first in quartet H with 3 victories, thus, being a single win away from securing their place in the 1/8 finals of the tournament. The first match against "Qarabag", held two weeks ago, was a thrashing, at least from the 29th minute: Leverkusen achieved a 5:1 rout. In the three opening rounds, the Germans hammered 11 goals, while conceding only 2.
These teams met each other at the end of October, and then "Bayer" pulverised their opponent with a score of 5:1.
So far, there is no answer to the question who can defeat "Bayer Leverkusen" this season... Xabi Alonso's team, undefeated in all competitions where they participate, have won 15 out of their 16 matches and are demonstrating superb football. To advance to the Europa League's 1/8 finals, the Germans need to win, as in the first match (5:1). Qarabag, of course, has a good home record, but significantly lacks in skills and experience compared to its opponent. I'm not expecting a sensation here and I bet on the guests' victory.
"Bayer" hammered 11 goals in three opening rounds, 5 of which were against "Qarabag". We confidently place a bet on the guests' individual total over 1.5.
"Bayer" will claim the ball and control the initiative throughout the match. I believe that Leverkusen will win the corners with a handicap of -1.5.
In the first match, "Qarabag" earned 3 warnings, which is no surprise - it’s virtually impossible to thwart Bayer's attack without fouling this season. I bet that the black-and-whites will again recieve 3 yellow cards.
I'll bet on an exact score of 1:2 in favor of "Bayer".
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