Bundesliga: Leverkusen Can Consolidate Their Top Spot With a Win Against Heidenheim

Bayer Leverkusen vs Heidenheim

Bayer Leverkusen are still at the top of the Bundesliga table after last weekend’s set of Bundesliga 2023 results. Die Werkself got a valuable point after holding the defending champions Bayern Munich to an entertaining 2-2 draw, and another win on Saturday would surely help their title charge.

This weekend, Xabi Alonso’s boys are up against Heidenheim, who earned their promotion by being the Bundesliga 2 champions last season.

The pre-game SBOTOP betting odds are in favour of the hosts. But with Bayern Munich also having a seemingly easy match against VfL Bochum, Bayer Leverkusen can’t afford to underestimate their ambitious visitors.

Learn more about these two teams by reading our match preview below.

Talking Points

Are Bayer Leverkusen legitimate contenders?

This is a question not only valid in the Bundesliga but also in the Europa League, as they started their campaign on a bright note with a 4-0 shellacking of BK Hacken.

Victor Boniface’s through ball allowed Florian Wirtz to start the scoring after 10 minutes, which was quickly followed by Amine Adli’s effort six minutes later to double their lead.

Die Werkself’s lead ballooned to four when Victor Boniface and Jonas Hofmann also found the back of the net in the second half, and they are now the favourites to get out of Group H.

Having recorded five goals and three assists, Boniface remains in fine form. The Nigerian striker now has 29 shots on goal after four matchdays to lead the whole Bundesliga, which is almost double Tim Kleindienst’s next best tally of 17.

One key aspect of Bayer Leverkusen’s resurgence under Xabi Alonso is their passing game, as they have the second-best pass completion rate of 88.8-per cent, behind only Bayern Munich.

Centre-back Jonathan Tah leads the way in that regard, as he has a perfect 100-per cent pass completion rate from 56 passes, making him a vital member of their squad.

Overall, there’s still work to be done under Alonso, but it appears that they have all the ingredients to compete on all fronts.

Heidenheim need their bright youngsters to shine

Heidenheim must be relatively satisfied with how their first top-flight season has gone so far. After a shaky start to the season, they held Borussia Dortmund to a 2-2 draw before grabbing their first Bundesliga victory last time out.

What makes Heidenheim intriguing are their youngsters, who look mature beyond their years. So far this season, they’ve notched eight goals, thanks in large part to Eren Dinkci and Jan-Niklas Beste, who have five goals combined.

Dinkci and Beste were instrumental in their 4-2 win against Werder Bremen, as they scored the pivotal goals to complete their comeback after being down 2-1.

If FCH are going to make some noise in the German top-flight, it would likely be on the back of spectacular campaigns from these two U-25 studs.

Frank Schmidt may be the longest-serving coach in German football history, but this is his first time coaching in the German top-flight, so he has his work cut out for him.

History

Bayer Leverkusen and Heidenheim have only met once prior to this weekend, which was in the 2018-19 DFB-Pokal Round of 16. Believe it or not, Heidenheim were 2-1 winners in the said matchup.

After eliminating Bayer Leverkusen, Heidenheim were defeated by Bayern Munich in an entertaining 5-4 quarter-finals affair. Bayern Munich went on to win the whole tournament.

But Die Werkself are capable of avenging the said defeat, as they have only lost one of their last seven maiden encounters with Bundesliga sides, which was a 3-2 home loss against RB Leipzig in November 2016.

Xabi Alonso’s men are enjoying their best start to a Bundesliga campaign in 14 years, with 10 points after four games. For context, Bayer Leverkusen needed 13 games to reach double figures last year.

The hosts have also scored 13 goals over their first four games of this Bundesliga campaign to draw level with the club record originally set in 1986-87.

Betting Tip

All signs point to a Bayer Leverkusen win, as per the Bundesliga 2023 odds. Die Werkself are priced at 1.23, while Heidenheim are huge underdogs at 8.50, and a draw is at 6.00 odds in the 1X2 market.

With a healthy squad to choose from, Xabi Alonso has options, and any result other than a win is considered a shock for Bayer Leverkusen.

And Die Werkself are going to do this by overwhelming their opponents with a barrage of goals, making Over 3.25 at 1.71 or even Total Goals 4-6 at 2.16 your top alternative bets.

 

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