The German Bundesliga Round 26 will wrap up on Sunday with clash between the Bayer Leverkusen and VfLWolsburg. Both teams have somewhat underachieved this season as they are placed in the lower part of the table and are still battling for the safe zone and to stay away from the relegation zone. The VfL Wolfsburg is actually just outside the danger zone while the home team is only two points ahead of the Wolves. Considering that prior to the begin of this season their fans expected their teams to be at the very top of the table, it is safe to say that they are probably the biggest dissapointment of the season. In their first meeting this season Bayer Leverkusen managed to defeat the VfL Wolsburg with 2:1 away.
BAYER LEVERKUSEN vs. VfL WOLFSBURG
3-Way: 1: Leverkusen -106; X: +286 Draw; Wolfsburg +359
Spread -0.5: Leverkusen -114; Wolfsburg +108
Total +2.5: Over -122; Under +119
During the month of February, Bayer Leverkusen won two straight games and at that point it seemed as if they would go on to extend that positive streak and play up to the expectations and their potential. Instead, they fall right back to the negative streak , losing twice to Atletico Madrid in the Champions league, while in the domestic league they played 4 games without recording a single win. Out of those 4 games, Leverkusen recorded 3 losses and one draw. On their home soil, they lost to Mainz 05 (0:2) and drawn against Werder Bremen (1:1), while on the road they lost to Borussia Dortmund (6:2) and most recently against Hoffenheim (0:1). Do we need to state again that they are in a big crisis???
Even the manager change has not done a whole lot to the struggling Leverkusen team, but if coach Korkut hopes to keep his position at the helm, his team better start winning soon. The roster has seen a lot of changes as well, although the injury bug also had something do with that as well. Wendell missed the last game because of the red card received in the matchup against Werder Bremen, while Tah and Chicharito missed the game because of an injury. The management hopes that the recent break because the National fixtures would have a positive effect on the team and that they will pull it together and make a final push for the remainder of the season. Coach Korkut will not be able to count on Calhanoglu, Bender and Baumgartlinger, while Tah could return to the lineup.
The VfL Wolfsburg, on the other side, is even in a worse situation as they are ranked 15th with 29 points to their name, the same amount as the 16th ranked Augsburg and the 14th ranked Mainz 05. However, a sign of improvement came in the last three Bundesliga rounds when the Wolves won 7 points (2W, 1D), pulling a 1:1 away draw against Mainz 05 and recording two straight wins against RB Leipzig (0:1) away and most recently against Darmstadt (1:0) at home. Although the fans might have had expected a more convincing win over the bottom ranked Darmstadt, the three points is all that it counts, especially considering all of the problems that the Wolves had to deal with during the season.
Mario Gomez is playing phenomenally lately for the VfL Wolfsburg and it is safe to say that he is carrying the entire team on his back, scoring all three goals in the last three games. Manager Jonker was forced to make a lot of changes in the roster as well, mostly because of the cards collected and the injuries his players were dealing with. R. Rodriguez and the goalkeeper Benaglio were both missing with injuries in the previous games. However, it seems that Benaglio is finally fit and should be in the lineup once again. Didavi is also close to return, while the defender Bruma is still out indefinitely.
Both teams have been struggling throughout the season and points won in this contest will mean the World to either team. However, the game is played at the BayArena which means that the home team could hold a slight advantage. They cannot afford anymore slipups as they could seriously endanger their Bundesliga status, but same goes for the VfL Wolfsburg. My tip is to go with the over as I expect a lot of goals.
MY PICK: Over 2.5 goals (-122)
