Bayer Leverkusen Aims for Victory Against Union Berlin in Bundesliga Showdown

LEVERKUSEN, Germany — Bayer Leverkusen will seek back-to-back Bundesliga wins when they host Union Berlin at the BayArena on Saturday. Under new coach Kasper Hjulmand, who took over from Erik ten Hag in early September, Leverkusen has had a challenging start with two wins and three draws in five competitive matches.

In their latest outing, Leverkusen claimed a narrow 2-1 victory against St. Pauli last Saturday, with goals from Edmond Tapsoba and Ernest Poku. However, they followed that success with a disappointing 1-1 draw in their midweek Champions League match against PSV Eindhoven. Christian Kofane initially gave Leverkusen the lead, but Ismael Saibari equalized shortly after.

This Champions League draw has placed Leverkusen in 25th position, emphasizing the need to refocus on the Bundesliga, where they hope to continue their unbeaten home record against Union Berlin, having managed three wins and three draws in their last six meetings.

Unfortunately, Leverkusen will miss defender Axel Tape due to injury, along with teammates Exequiel Palacios, Martin Terrier, and Patrik Schick. The expected lineup for Leverkusen includes Flekken, Quansah, Badé, Tapsoba, Vázquez, Fernández, García, Grimaldo, Tillman, Poku, and Kofane.

Union Berlin currently sits in 11th place on the Bundesliga table, with two wins, one draw, and two losses. After opening the season with a victory over Stuttgart, they struggled with losses to Borussia Dortmund and Hoffenheim before recovering with a thrilling 4-3 victory against Eintracht Frankfurt. Last weekend, they settled for a goalless draw against Hamburger SV.

Coach Steffen Baumgart expressed frustration over the prior week’s draw and acknowledged the tough challenge Leverkusen poses. ‘It’s hard to get space against them,’ he said. ‘We have to find a solution. It’s an exciting challenge for us.’ Union Berlin will be unable to field Josip Juranović and Robert Skov, while Matheo Raab is doubtful due to illness. They remain hopeful about Stanley Nsoki’s participation after his recent transfer from Hoffenheim.

Union’s predicted lineup includes Rønnow, Doekhi, Querfeld, Leite, Trimmel, Khedira, Haberer, Köhn, Burke, Ansah, and Ilić. Both teams will be eager to secure a favorable result in this crucial Bundesliga fixture.