Leverkusen vs. Werder Bremen preview: Can Die Werkself escape the relegation zone?
Werder Bremen are off to the BayArena this Saturday to face the shockingly 17th ranked club in the Bundesliga.
Bayer Leverkusen
After Jeremie Frimpong pretty much single-handedly captured Leverkusen's win over Atletico Madrid on Tuesday, they now have a quick turnaround with a decent Werder Bremen side coming to town. The company club are somehow still looking for their second league win of the season on Matchday 7.
Callum Hudson-Odoi should pair with Moussa Diaby on the wing and up front with Patrik Schick, who is struggling along with so many of his teammates. It will be intriguing to see if Gerardo Seoane starts with a back three or four, as Leverkusen can't seem to decide how they want to play.
For now, Seoane still has a job at the BayArena and stated, "There is no ranking of importance in games, whether in the Bundesliga or the Champions League. The next game is always the most important."
Die Werkself are off to their worst start since 1982 and have lost their first three home games to begin the season.
Team News
Florian Wirtz, Amine Adli, Karim Bellarabi and Andrey Lunev continue to remain out, while Exequiel Palacios now joins the list.
Werder Bremen
Werder haven't lost on the road since their promotion back into the top flight and have more than exceeded expectations at 9th in the table. This is in large part due to a healthy Niclas Füllkrug, who leads the league in goals at five with Union's Sheraldo Becker.
Die Grünweißen should've come away with at least a point against Augsburg last weekend, as it's unlikely Marvin Ducksch will see a penalty anytime soon. Every Werder game thus far has been a chaotic affair and expect this one to be no different.
Head coach Ole Werner believes that, "Organization and positioning are crucial when you're defending against a team that have that sort of pace. We've been able to learn from the games against Frankfurt, Stuttgart and Wolfsburg."
Werder's back line of Pieper, Veljkovic and Friedl will have their hands full trying to slow down such a talented, quick Leverkusen squad. Mitchell Weiser and Jens Stage will be forced to fall back and help with defensive duties.
Team News
Jean Manuel Mbom, Eren Dinkci, Leo Bittencourt and Dikeni Salifou are likely out. After suffering an injury last week to Augsburg, Jiri Pavlenka has returned to full fitness.