Bochum vs. Bayer Leverkusen preview: Can Bochum escape the bottom three?
Bochum will look to escape the danger zone when they face Bayer Leverkusen on the final day of the 2022-23 campaign.
Leverkusen, meanwhile, are looking to secure their place in the top six and qualify for European competiton.
Leverkusen, meanwhile, are looking to secure their place in the top six and qualify for European competiton.
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Bochum
Bochum’s place in the Bundesliga is at stake on the final day of the season after they dropped into the bottom three last weekend.
They managed to salvage a point in their away meeting with Hertha thanks to Keven Schlotterbeck’s 94th-minute equaliser, but a win for Stuttgart ensured Bochum finished Matchday 33 in the relegation playoff spot on goal difference.
While Bochum will be targeting safety, they are also at risk of being automatically relegated with 17th-placed Schalke just one point behind Thomas Reis’s side. Bochum will avoid automatic relegation as long as they match Schalke’s result. Meanwhile, Bochum will move out of the bottom three if they better Stuttgart’s result against Hoffenheim.
Having picked up 23 of their 32 points on home turf this season, Bochum will be hoping to make full use of home advantage on Saturday.
Team News
Bochum will go into the final game of the season without the services of Patrick Osterhage, Konstantinos Stafylidis and Mohammed Tolba.
Leverkusen
Leverkusen appear to have run out of steam as the season heads towards its conclusion. Die Werkself are winless in six games across all competitions after they gave up a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 with Borussia Mönchengladbach last weekend. Amine Adli and Kerem Demirbay both found the net in the first half to put Leverkusen in the driving seat. Jonas Hofmann managed to pull a goal back for Gladbach in the 58th minute, before Lars Stindl snatched a point with a 90th-minute equaliser.
Despite dropping two points, Leverkusen remained in sixth position with a one-point gap to Wolfsburg, while they are three points clear of eighth-placed Eintracht Frankfurt. Leverkusen know that a victory will secure European qualification, but a failure to claim all three points will leave them relying on results elsewhere.
Leverkusen are unbeaten in their last seven Bundesliga meetings with Bochum, and they have the chance to complete a league double over Saturday's opponents after winning 2-0 in January's reverse fixture.
Team News
The visitors are still unable to call upon Robert Andrich, Karim Bellarabi, Odilon Kossounou, Andrey Lunev and Patrik Schick.