Preview: Leverkusen looking to cause an upset at the expense of Bayern Munich
The home side will be aiming to repeat the antics of last season when they defeated Bayern Munich 2-1 at the Allianz Arena courtesy of goals from Stefan Kießling and Sidney Sam both of whom have been in incredible form this season and share 10 goals among each other in the league.
Leverkusen will be brimming with confidence having scored a 2-1 victory over Real Sociedad and will be hoping to translate their midweek performance on Saturday when they meet the German champions.
Sami Hyypiä’s side will however have their work cut out being put up against a team which is arguably the strongest in Europe at the moment. The Bavarians scored an emphatic victory over English title contenders Manchester City, thrashing the Citizens 3-1 in what was a scintillating performance from the European champions.
Pep Guardiola’s side have been on a devastating run and will be hoping to keep it going when they face Leverkusen. The Bavarians have won each of their last six matches scoring 17 and conceding just two goals in the process.
Bayern and Leverkusen find themselves second and third respectively in the league table with only a point separating the two sides. Both the teams have lost points in one match only with Leverkusen losing their only match of the season to Schalke, while Bayern drew their only match of the season against 17th placedFreiburg.
Ironically both the teams were last defeated at home by one another, with the match ending 2-1 on both the occasions. Sami Hyypia's men lost to Bayern back in March when a 87th minute own goal by Philipp Wollscheid's rewarded the Bavarians all three points after Simon Rolfes had cancelled out Mario Gomez's opener.
Guardiola will once again be without long term absentees Thiago Alcantara and Holger Badstuber who are both nursing knee injuries. However Spanish midfielder Javi Martinez could be back in the squad after a successful groin surgery.
Mario Gotze has also returned to the squad but has only been good enough for the bench. The former Borussia Dortmund playmaker was an unused substitute in the 1-0 victory over Wolfsburg and briefly featured in the Champions League match against Manchester City. But the highly rated playmaker who has only featured thrice for the Bavarians since his 37 million euro move in the summer is eager to earn his place in the starting eleven.
"It has not been easy to remain patient," Gotze said
"I obviously want to play games. Every player wants to play games. I want to be on the pitch for each second of every game.
"But I have been injured for four weeks. Let's not forget that."
Leverkusen's only injury doubt is Gonzalo Castro who is expected to be out with a hamstring injury.
Where to watch the match – live stream, start time, TV channels, Live scores
Watch Bayer Leverkusen vs Bayern Munich live on Saturday, October 5, 2013:
In Canada at 12:30 EDT on GolTV Canada
In UK at 17:30 BST on BT Sport 1
In USA at 12:30 ET on Gol TV USA
Fans in other parts of the world can watch the match live on their local channels. Those in Germany can watch the match live on Sky Go and Sky 3D.
For complete details of match listings and live scores, visit the Bayer Leverkusen vs Bayern Munich match page.
