Bundesliga: Do the Wolves Have Enough Against Die Werkself?

VfL Wolfsburg vs Bayer Leverkusen

VfL Wolfsburg are the next team that is going to have a crack at Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen. The Wolves are scheduled to host Die Werkself at the Volkswagen Arena in what should be a fun match on Saturday.

Niko Kovac’s men are hoping to get back into the European mix after the most recent international break.

This season, VfL Wolfsburg have blown hot and cold with their mixed bag of Bundesliga 2023 results, so they must find their consistency to move up in the standings, starting with a victory against the league frontrunners.

But it’ll be easier said than done because Bayer Leverkusen are on top for a reason. Xabi Alonso’s men are one of the few undefeated teams left this term.

Talking Points

Wolfsburg’s defence further compromised

After conceding three goals in their most recent loss at the hands of VfB Stuttgart, VfL Wolfsburg are expected to have a much tougher time on defence due to a huge injury blow in their ranks.

Koen Casteels, their first-choice goalkeeper who’s set to leave the team at the end of the season, suffered an abdominal injury while on international duty. With him sidelined, it was Matz Sels who was Belgium’s starting goalkeeper in their games against Sweden and Austria.

Veteran shotstopper Pavao Pervan is expected to start at Casteel’s place this weekend as a result. The Austrian, who has been with the Wolves since 2018, has only played 35 games in the past five years, so he will relish this new opportunity.

What’s ironic about Pervan is that when he made his debut for the Wolves in 2018, it resulted in a 3-1 victory against, you guessed it, Bayer Leverkusen.

He will have to shake off some rust this weekend, as his last game was in May 2022, when VfL Wolfsburg beat Koln 1-0 in Cologne.

Leverkusen trio deserve plaudits

Florian Wirtz is a wanted man in Europe, while Alex Grimaldo and Jeremie Frimpong have formed a lethal partnership at Bayer Leverkusen.

Due to his outstanding performances this season, Wirtz is reportedly being eyed by Bayern Munich, Liverpool, and Barcelona ahead of January. The young midfielder said that he’s committed to Die Werkself this season, although he didn’t outright deny the transfer rumours.

The 20-year-old now has three goals and four assists this season. All in all, Wirtz has scored 26 goals and recorded 34 assists in 113 appearances across all competitions so far at Bayer Leverkusen.

On the other hand, Alex Grimaldo and Jeremie Frimpong have been integral cogs to the Die Werkself goal-scoring machine since they have contributed two goals and three assists each thus far.

This is quite impressive because Grimaldo and Frimpong are both defenders, and VfL Wolfsburg have to account for these two full-backs on Saturday.

History

VfL Wolfsburg have yet to win a home match against Bayer Leverkusen since October 2015 (D1, L5). And interestingly enough, none of the last 14 Bundesliga matches between the Wolves and Die Werkself have ended with a home win for either side.

Niko Kovac has lost five of nine encounters with Bayer Leverkusen as a manager (W2, D2).

Bayer Leverkusen are unbeaten in their last seven Bundesliga road matches against VfL Wolfsburg, and they’ve kept five clean sheets in a row against them.

19 points is the best return for Bayer Leverkusen after the first seven matchdays of a Bundesliga campaign. At this juncture last year, Die Werkself were in 15^th place after seven games with only five points.

And Bayer Leverkusen are in superb form this season, as they are still undefeated after 10 games in all competitions thus far (W9, D1). This is the best overall run they’ve had to start the season since their Bundesliga promotion in 1979.

Betting Tip

The short answer to the question in the article title is no, and the SBOTOP Bundesliga 2023 odds seem to agree. Bayer Leverkusen are at 1.80 odds to win, although VfL Wolfsburg aren’t far behind at 3.65, and a draw is at 3.70 in the 1X2 market.

At this point, it’s beginning to feel like Bayer Leverkusen are legitimate title contenders, and they’re stopping at nothing to try and dethrone Bayern Munich once and for all. Unfortunately for VfL Wolfsburg, they are in their way this weekend.

Meanwhile, Total Goal 2-3 at 2.07, 4-6 at 2.72, and Over 3.25 at 2.21 are attractive alternative bets for this particular game, with Total Goal 2-3 at 2.07 being the safest one among the three.

 

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