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Bayer Leverkusen vs FC Koln Prediction & Betting tips
Did you know that the stadiums of Bayer Leverkusen and 1. FC Köln are just 15 kilometers apart? Not even the home locations of the two Berlin Bundesliga clubs Hertha and Union are so close together. As a result, it is not surprising that a real Rhenish derby can be spoken of before the direct duel on Wednesday evening.
In the ranking, the two clubs from western Germany are no neighbors. While the Werkself continue to fight for participation in the Champions League, the billy goats want to take the last step towards relegation. Before the game of Leverkusen against Cologne, the odds of the best bookmakers are therefore clearly in favor of the host.
The pressure is clearly on the shoulders of Peter Bosz’s team, who must not lose feathers in a duel with Borussia Mönchengladbach for the last vacant top class place. From the home side’s point of view, the undertaking is not going to be easy, especially since the Leverkusen team’s last two home games were lost. In addition, Bayer has been waiting for three straight duels against “Effzeh” for three.
However, for the Leverkusen against Cologne forecast it should also be taken into account that the guests from the cathedral city are not in the best shape to make the short journey. After the forced break, Markus Gisdol’s protégés are still waiting for their first success. In the six games only three points jumped out for the table twelfth, so that the last little hope of being able to look again at the Europa League quickly vanished.
Leverkusen :
Is Bayer 04 Leverkusen on the way to a crisis? For the first time in the entire second half of the season, coach Peter Bosz’s men had two games in a row without a win. After the expected 2: 4 loss at home to FC Bayern, the Rheinländer had to be satisfied with a disappointing 1-1 draw at FC Schalke 04 on Sunday. The bottom line is therefore only four points from the recent four games for the Champions League contender.
To speak of a real lack of form would nevertheless be presumptuous, especially since Bayer is still playing a strong second half of the season and behind the designated champions from Munich (40) and Borussia Dortmund (36) collected the most points (29). Nine of the 14 matches in calendar year 2020 were victorious. After the restart, there were at least three successes in six attempts.
Despite the recent fluctuations in performance, Kai Havertz and Co. are still in pole position in the race for fourth place. The Werkself have one point ahead of the matchday ahead of Borussia Mönchengladbach, who got there with VfL Wolfsburg on Tuesday at 19:30 p.m. In order to maintain or even expand this good starting position, a home win for Leverkusen in the Rhenish derby on Wednesday evening is mandatory.
The fact that the last five home games against promoted players were all won with a goal difference of 12: 4 speaks for the cup finalists. Also in the current season, the Bosz eleven presented themselves consistently well against the newcomers. Four of the five matches completed so far have been won; only in the first leg against the Cologne the fourth placed the loser.
Another argument why we recommend our readers’ home game odds against Leverkusen to Cologne is the 15-game goal streak of the fifth best Bundesliga offensive, which will take place for the last time on Matchday 16, in December 2019 remained without own hit. A handicap bet in favor of the Werkself can also be used to boost the prices on the favorites. The Rhinelander celebrated four of the last five victories by at least two goals.
Personnel didn’t do too much compared to the weekend. Only Lucas Alario saw his fifth yellow card on Schalke and must therefore watch on Wednesday. In addition, Lars Bender and Karim Bellarabi suffered injuries due to injuries. For Alario, Kevin Volland could start from the beginning for the first time since his serious injury. Particular attention is also paid to the young Florian Wirtz, who is known to have moved from Cologne to Leverkusen in winter.
Cologne:
1. FC Köln can undoubtedly be described as one of the big losers in the restart. As one of the few teams, coach Markus Gisdol’s team has never been able to land a threesome since the game started again. Three division of points are faced with as many losses in this period.
If you look at the Bundesliga table, it becomes clear that seventh place, which would have been equivalent to qualifying for the Europa League, would not have been out of reach for a long time.
However, the billy goats could not be expected to preserve their excellent form from before the interruption with eight wins from ten games over the long period of idle.
Strictly speaking, the relegation is not yet dry, although the cushion from seven points to places 16 and 17 should still be sufficient for three games to be represented in the coming season. To make a mathematical catch behind the minimum goal, an away win on Wednesday evening at the Rhenish neighbor in the BayArena is required.
Between Leverkusen and Cologne, a forecast for the guest is anything but advisable. Among other things, this is due to the not particularly stable defensive, which has conceded at least two goals in six of the past seven matches. With such a high figure, it doesn’t help much that the offensive for top scorer Jhon Cordoba scored at least one goal 17 times in the highest German league.
With the exception of Marcel Risse and Simon Terodde, Coach Gisdol is available to all players. Noah Katterbach and Elvis Rexhebecaj are potential candidates for a starting line-up. Six players are threatened by a yellow card suspension. This fact is also not entirely unimportant in view of the exciting final sprint.
Bayer Leverkusen vs FC Koln head to head matches
14.12.19 BUN FC Koln Bayer Leverkusen 2 : 0
18.03.18 BUN FC Koln Bayer Leverkusen 2 : 0
28.10.17 BUN Bayer Leverkusen FC Koln 2 : 1
13.05.17 BUN Bayer Leverkusen FC Koln 2 : 2
21.12.16 BUN FC Koln Bayer Leverkusen 1 : 1