Bayer Leverkusen - VfB Stuttgart

The winter break in Germany is finally over and the goodies are coming like pearls on a string in the opening round. Bayer Leverkusen hosts Stuttgart in one of the top matches this weekend. It's 3rd vs. 6th place, but there's only 3 points separating them (though 10 goals difference).

Leverkusen seem to have found stability under Hjulmand, while Stuttgart haven't had a bad autumn season either. Both teams are fighting in the 2nd-7th place zone (where there is a 7 point difference), so 3 points are essential here to kickstart the spring season properly.

Bayer Leverkusen – The Wheelman effect is starting to set in

Hjulmand took over a chaotic team and had plenty of challenges ahead of him. But he took them head on and the team has really stabilized throughout the fall season, apart from a few banana peels here and there (2-7 against PSG and a 2-0 loss against Augsburg for example). The fall season was also ended in an exemplary manner with a 3-1 away win against RB Leipzig, nothing short of brute strength against a Leipzig that was undefeated at home before that match.

Leverkusen has 4 wins in the last 5 home games. Leverkusen's midfield in particular has settled in. And Schick is finally getting consistent playing time and is thankful for that. There are some injury problems/uncertainty with Badé, important Grimaldo, Palacios and Poku. Besides Grimaldo, Leverkusen has good coverage.

VfB Stuttgart – Solid recovery after a deplorable 24/25 season

VfB Stuttgart has proven to be a stable and solid home team, here they are 5-1-1 (although only 9-8 in goal difference). But it is gone that they fail, against all kinds of opposition. The result is half-played season is 3-1-4. They can't quite figure it out and it is extremely difficult to predict what you will get from Stuttgart when they are away. But, thanks to their home form, they are in 6th place and are in every way in the fight for the top 3. If we look at the winning percentage, Hoeness is still well ahead in his Stuttgart time with 56% and 1.8 points per game.

In terms of the squad, there is uncertainty surrounding Al Dakhil, Jaquez, Zagadou, Jeltsch, Darvich, Assignon, Jovanich and Tomás. Darvich is probably the biggest loss in that regard, but Stuttgart is also well prepared for this match.

Conclusion: Several exciting options in the main match of the round

What is common with Leverkusen, as it also did during Alonso's time, is explosive starts and that Leverkusen sets the standard by scoring first. This has happened in 7 of 8 home matches. Furthermore, we can see that Stuttgart has conceded first in 5 of 8 away matches. Noted.

Leverkusen also average 16.63 shots per home game, of which 5.75 of these have been on target. Stuttgart, on the other hand, concedes 11.88 goals per away game, 4.63 on target. Leverkusen also produces an average of 8 corners per home game, of which Stuttgart concedes an average of 4.25 corners per away game.

Another thing we have to look at is goals. In Leverkusen's 4 out of 8 home games there have been over 2.5 goals. Stuttgart? 8 out of 8 away games. And if we look at the last 6 games between them, 5 of them have ended with over 2.5 goals. The only thing to keep in mind is that the start after the winter break can always bring some surprises.

The two teams that have taken Leverkusen on home soil in the autumn season are Hoffenheim (opening round) and Dortmund. An absolutely solid statistic considering the club's condition, at least at the start of the season. Stuttgart has been variable away, with 3-1-4 and 16-14 in goal difference. The losses have come against various opposition, and Stuttgart shows far more vulnerability away than at home.

Of several exciting options, the following main games are landed on:

Germany at 18:30: Bayer Leverkusen – VfB Stuttgart: Over 1.5 goals to Bayern Leverkusen (1.79)

Alternative game:

Germany at 18:30: Bayer Leverkusen – VfB Stuttgart: Bayer Leverkusen to score first (1.72)