Augsburg vs. Bayer Leverkusen preview: Champions looking to extend winning streak
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Augsburg
Augsburg will head into the weekend in 13th place after winning four, drawing four and losing five of their 13 league matches this season. While they may be in the bottom half of the table, Augsburg are closer to the European places than they are to the drop zone, with five points separating them from the top six, compared with the six-point gap between themselves and the bottom three.
The Fuggerstädter have proven to be a tough team to beat in recent times, having lost one of their previous eight matches in all competitions. That sole victory took place in last month’s away clash against Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich. However, Augsburg quickly bounced back to claim a 1-0 win over Bochum, before they beat Karlsruhe on penalties to seal their spot in the DFB-Pokal quarter-finals.
Jess Thorup’s side then returned to league action with a hard-fought 2-2 draw in their away meeting with second-placed Eintracht Frankfurt. After picking up a useful point at Deutsche Bank Park, Augsburg will now return to the home comforts of the WWK Arena, where they are unbeaten in four league matches (W3, D1).
Team News
The hosts are unable to call upon Masaya Okugawa, Mads Pedersen, Yusuf Kabadayi, Finn Dahmen, Fredrik Jensen and Reece Oxford.
Bayer Leverkusen
Leverkusen have put together a run of six consecutive victories since they were held to a 1-1 draw in their away meeting with Bochum. They kicked off that winning run with home victories over Heidenheim and Red Bull Salzburg in the league and Champions League respectively. Xabi Alonso’s side went on to record Bundesliga wins against Union Berlin and St. Pauli on either side of a narrow victory against ten-man Bayern Munich in the Pokal.
Their winning streak looked set to end in Tuesday’s Champions League home clash against Inter Milan until Nordi Mukiele netted a 90th-minute winner. That moved Leverkusen into fourth position with two games left to play in the league phase. After enjoying success in European action, die Werkself will now turn their focus back to their Bundesliga title defence. The third-placed side have work to do if they are to win back-to-back league titles, with seven points separating them from leaders Bayern.
Die Werkself will fancy their chances of beating Augsburg, having won four of their previous six head-to-head away meetings, including a narrow 1-0 win on their most recent trip to the WWK Arena in January.
Team News
Leverkusen will have to assess Patrik Schick’s fitness ahead of Saturday’s away trip. The visitors will definitely be without the services of Jonas Hofmann, Amine Adli and Victor Boniface.
