Xabi Alonso’s still unbeaten Bayer Leverkusen have the chance against Hoffenheim to extend their lead at the Bundesliga summit on Saturday (kick-off: 3.30pm CET) before Bayern Munich take on Borussia Dortmund in Der Klassiker in the evening.
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It’s the first time in over a month that Leverkusen get to play ahead of Bayern on a matchday, with the possibility of opening up a 13-point gap before the defending champions face Dortmund, but the prospect of playing catch-up each weekend hasn’t been an issue either. Alonso’s men have won their last seven Bundesliga fixtures and have dropped points just once in 2024 to build their 10-point cushion at the top. An unbeaten campaign thus far has brought Die Werkself to within potentially three games of winning a maiden Bundesliga title, while no defeats in 38 competitive fixtures in 2023/24 also has them dreaming of a potential treble with the DFB Cup and UEFA Europa League. Alonso has managed his squad well given the number of matches and could potentially have top scorer Victor Boniface (16 goals in all competitions) back for this game after the Nigerian suffered a muscular injury in January. However, Patrik Schick, who’s struck 10 times in 20 outings since his return, is more likely to lead the line. There’s also the expectation that Exequiel Palacios and Jonas Hofmann will be fit for the season’s final straight after they sat out Argentina and Germany’s international fixtures respectively. Florian Wirtz will almost definitely feature after he opened his senior scoring account for Germany inside seven seconds of the friendly win over France.
Hoffenheim gave Leverkusen a bit of a scare in the reverse fixture after originally coming from two goals down, but it’s that level of inconsistency that’s been their biggest issue this season. Pellegrino Matarazzo’s side come to the BayArena on the back of defeats to VfB Stuttgart and Eintracht Frankfurt, having previously beaten Werder Bremen and Dortmund – their only two wins since the start of December. Nevertheless, the Sinsheim club remain very much in the hunt for European qualification in eighth place, only seven points off the final guaranteed continental berth in sixth, with the potential for even a seventh. Maximilian Beier was part of the senior Germany squad for the first time in the friendlies against France and the Netherlands – who boasted TSG strike partner Wout Weghorst – on the back of his impressive domestic form with 12 goals. Club record goalscorer Andrej Kramarić has started three of the last six games on the bench, with Matarazzo publicly stating the Croatian has not been at his best, but that he has a habit of getting on a roll in spring. Ozan Kabak is available again after suspension, but John Brooks serves the final match of his two-game ban. Midfielders Grischa Prömel and Dennis Geiger are also back in training after injuries.
Watch: A look at the Leverkusen goalscoring machine
Match stats
- Alejandro Grimaldo got his only Bundesliga brace in the reverse fixture. The Spaniard is Leverkusen’s top goal threat this term with nine goals and 11 assists in the league.
- Joint-second on the Bundesliga assist chart, behind Grimaldo and Leroy Sané (both 11), is Wirtz with 10. The 20-year-old also has seven goals.
- Leverkusen’s 22 league wins is already a new club record for an entire Bundesliga season and one more than Bayern managed when they won the title last year.
- Beier leads the Hoffenheim scoring chart with 12 goals in 2023/24, followed by Kramarić with eight. Deniz Undav is the only German striker with more league goals than the 21-year-old.
- Hoffenheim are 21 games without a clean sheet, which is the longest run in the division. Oliver Baumann has managed only one this season; Lukáš Hrádecký tops the league with 12.
- Hoffenheim last beat a league leader in September 2020 (4-1 against Bayern). There has not been a home win in the last six meetings between TSG and Leverkusen.
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Probable line-ups
Leverkusen: Hrádecký (c) – Stanišić, Tah, Hincapié – Frimpong, Andrich, Xhaka, Grimaldo – Adli, Wirtz – Schick
Out: –
Doubtful: Arthur (thigh), Boniface (groin), Hofmann (hip), Palacios (muscular)
Coach: Xabi Alonso
Hoffenheim: Baumann (c) – Kabak, Grillitsch, Nsoki – Kadeřábek, Stach, Tohumcu, Jurásek – Bebou, Weghorst, Beier
Out: Berisha (knee), Brooks (suspended), John (knee)
Doubtful: Geiger (muscular), Prömel (knee)
Coach: Pellegrino Matarazzo
