Bayer Leverkusen take on the visitors Elversberg in the round 1/16-finals of German DFB Pokal. The match will be played on Tuesday, October 29th at BayArena (Leverkusen).
Last season, Xabi Alonso's team secured the DFB-Pokal, defeating Kaiserslautern 1-0 in the final and adding the cup to their Bundesliga title. The new cup campaign began with an away match in the first round against Carl Zeiss Jena (1-0), with Jonas Hofmann scoring the game’s only goal early in the second half. Meanwhile, the "Pharmacists" are also competing in the Champions League, where they’ve earned seven points in three rounds, placing them among the group leaders. In the Bundesliga, Bayer currently sits third, five points behind leaders Bayern. Alonso's squad is on a nine-match unbeaten run across all competitions, though they have drawn their last two games against Brest (1-1) and Werder Bremen (2-2). Bayer will be without forward Marten Terrier, who is serving a two-game suspension in the DFB-Pokal, and winger Amine Adli is sidelined with a long-term injury, while defender Jeanuel Belocian also has health issues.
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Founded over 100 years ago, Elversberg has never won the DFB-Pokal. This season, Horst Steffen’s team advanced through the first round with a decisive 7-0 victory over Hildesheim. Elversberg spent the last several decades in Germany’s lower leagues, only debuting in the 2. Bundesliga last season, where they finished 11th. This season, they are in seventh place, only four points from the top. The Saarlanders head to Leverkusen on a four-match unbeaten streak in the second division, having earned 10 points from their last four games. On October 26, they defeated Hamburg 4-0 at home with a brace from Fisnik Asllani and goals by Luca Schnellbacher and Robin Fellhauer.
The difference in squad strength is stark, with Bayer’s lineup valued at nearly 40 times that of their 2. Bundesliga opponents. Even a draw in regulation would be considered an upset, let alone an Elversberg win. Still, Steffen’s team could realistically aim to score at the BayArena. Elversberg has consistently scored, netting at least one goal in nine of their last 10 matches across competitions. Bayer scores heavily, but their defense has shown vulnerabilities. In six of their last seven official matches, both teams scored, with even lesser opponents like Werder Bremen (2-2) and Holstein Kiel (2-2) managing to breach Leverkusen’s defense.
Prediction for the match: Elversberg to score – yes.
