Leverkusen vs. Club Brugge preview: Team news and predicted lineups
Group leaders Club Brugge face the BayArena club on Tuesday to wrap up Champions League group play. Leverkusen need at least a point and some help from Porto to claim a spot in the Europa League.
| Robert Andrich. | Photo: Bayer 04 Leverkusen |
The company club hold the tiebreaker over Atletico, but sit in last place by just one point. Leverkusen can advance to the Europa League with a win or a draw, depending on Porto's result against the Spanish giants.
Alonso is likely to heavily rotate his starting eleven again after an interesting lineup over the weekend. The likes of Jeremie Frimpong, Mitchel Bakker, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Patrick Schick started on the bench.
Midfielder Nadiem Amiri said, "Of course we're disappointed that we didn't advance in the Champions League, but tomorrow's game is important for the team's morale. This match is a good time to turn the tide."
Alonso added, "Reaching the Europa League is very important for us as a team, for the fans and the club. We want to keep playing internationally in the BayArena. Tomorrow we will fight to have this chance."
While Club Brugge have already claimed a spot in the Champions League round of 16, they will be looking for all three points in order to win Group B.
For Leverkusen, Piero Hincapie is suspended, while Florian Wirtz, Charles Aranguiz and Sardar Azmoun are out. Kerem Demirbay and Exequiel Palacios were back in the side on Saturday and should be in the squad yet again.
Denis Odoi, Abakar Sylla and Raphael Onyedika are all suspended for Club Brugge. Clinton Mata, Andreas Skov Olsen and Mats Rits are unlikely to feature with injuries.
Take a look at our predicted lineups here.
