Courtesy of three straight league victories – all of which saw them notch three or more goals – Dortmund have moved to within six points of league leaders Bayern Munich ahead of this matchday and will be targeting more success here given their six straight home H2H victories over their North Rhine-Westphalia counterparts!
BVB
It’s a battle between two of the top three to kick off Sunday’s Bundesliga action as title-chasing Borussia Dortmund play host to Champions League hopefuls Bayer Leverkusen. Courtesy of three straight league victories – all of which saw them notch three or more goals – Dortmund have moved to within six points of league leaders Bayern Munich ahead of this matchday and will be targeting more success here given their six straight home H2H victories over their North Rhine-Westphalia counterparts! With a long list of injuries to contend with however, including the influential duo of Erling Haaland and Mats Hummels, that could be easier said than done for Dortmund.
Still expect goals in this clash regardless of Haaland’s absence as both Dortmund (four) and Leverkusen (five) have played out the most Bundesliga games to witness over 5.5 total goals this campaign. Seven of the last eight H2Hs have also cleared 3.5 match strikes, including Dortmund’s 4-3 victory in the reverse.
Bayer Leverkusen
Back-to-back league wins have helped visiting Leverkusen shoot up to third spot ahead of this matchday as boss Gerard Seoane targets Champions League qualification for his side after a two-year hiatus. And with the division’s second-best away record this campaign, ‘Die Werkself’ will be hunting for a famous victory in this clash. That said, Leverkusen are still leaking goals at an alarming rate (1.6 goals per league outing) which doesn’t bode well for this meeting against free-scoring Dortmund. A quick start is also essential to success for the visitors who’ve failed to win on any of the eight occasions in which they’ve fallen behind in a Bundesliga outing this term.
Dortmund’s Marco Reus has 16 goal contributions in 21 previous H2Hs, whilst the Bundesliga’s current second topscorer, Patrik Schick, netted for Leverkusen in the reverse fixture back in September. With 47 yellow and two red cards, Leverkusen are the Bundesliga’s worst-disciplined side.