Bayer Leverkusen host French outfit Monaco in the first leg of the Europa League knockout clash on Thursday night and the Germans will look to build on their recent win with a positive result at home.
Leverkusen managed to bounce back from two consecutive defeats with a 3-1 win over Hoffenheim and they will be hoping to put together a winning run now.
The Germans are only in the Europa League because of a disappointing Champions League campaign where they picked up just one win from the group stages. They will be hoping to make amends and win the Europa League.
💬 @12Tapsoba: „Our goal is to get as far as possible in the #UEL. We look from game to game and want to start tomorrow with a good result."
🔜 #B04ASM | #UEL | #Bayer04 | #Werkself pic.twitter.com/pB1DIXnTO9
— Bayer 04 Leverkusen (@bayer04_en) February 15, 2023
Meanwhile, Monaco are in impressive form coming into this game and they are unbeaten in their last 6 matches across all competitions.
The visitors picked up a 3-1 win over Paris Saint-Germain in the last outing and they will be confident of grinding out a positive result here. Monaco will be hoping to pick up a vital away result here and then get the job done at home next week.
✅ 6 wins in 8 @Ligue1_ENG games
🙌 42 points out of 54
⚽️ 2+ goals scored per gameRouge and Blanc on a roll 🤪 pic.twitter.com/k8t0NGFrzG
— AS Monaco EN (@AS_Monaco_EN) February 15, 2023
Team News and Tactics
Bayer Leverkusen
The home side will be without the services of Andrey Lunev, Charles Aranguiz and Patrik Schick because of injuries.
The home side are likely to line up in a 3-4-3 formation with Lucas Hradecky in goal.
Edmond Tapsoba, Jonathan Tah and Piero Hincapie are likely to line up as the back three here and they will be hoping to help Leverkusen stay organised at the back and build from the deep as well. Jeremie Frimpong and Daley Sinkgraven are expected to be deployed as the full-backs. The two players will look to provide an outlet going forward and they will hope to protect the central defenders as well.
Kerem Demirbay and Robert Andrich will be deployed in the middle of the park and they will hope to keep things tight in the middle and recycle possession.
In the attack, Adam Hlozek and Moussa Diaby will line up as the wide forwards and they will be hoping to add creativity and goals from the flanks. Florian Wirtz is set to lead the line for the hosts.
Probable Lineup (3-4-3): Hradecky; Tapsoba, Tah, Hincapie; Frimpong, Demirbay, Andrich, Sinkgraven; Hlozek, Wirtz, Diaby
Monaco
The French outfit do not have any major injury problems heading into this contest but Kevin Volland is a doubt for the visitors and he is suffering from bruised ribs.
The away side are likely to line up in a 4-2-2-2 formation with Alexander Nubel in goal.
Ruben Aguilar and Caio Henrique will be deployed as the full-backs here while Axel Disasi will partner Guillermo Maripan at the heart of the defence.
Mohamed Camara and Youssouf Fofana will form the midfield pivot here and the two players will look to protect the central defenders and break up the opposition play.
Aleksandr Golovin and Krepin Diatta will be the attacking midfielders here and they will look to come inside and crowd out the midfield as well as drift into the wide areas depending upon the situation.
Wissam Ben Yedder is set to lead the line for Monaco alongside Takumi Minamino.
Probable Lineup (4-2-2-2): Nubel; Aguilar, Disasi, Maripan, Henrique; Camara, Fofana; Diatta, Golovin; Minamino, Yedder
Key Stats
- Leverkusen’s home record against Ligue 1 opposition is W6 D1 L3.
- Leverkusen have also beaten French opponents in all five meetings in UEFA Europa League and UEFA Cup games at the BayArena.
- All six of Bayer’s previous meetings with Monaco were in the UEFA Champions League group stage, with Leverkusen winning one, drawing two and losing three.
- Wissam Ben Yedder is Monaco’s top scorer this season and with 14 goals to his name.
- Monaco have conceded 5 goals from their last 5 matches across all competitions.
Player to watch out for
Moussa Diaby
Moussa Diaby has created the most chances for @bayer04_en in the Bundesliga this season – 39 📈 pic.twitter.com/cRtig9aHvz
— PFF FC (@PFF_FC) February 15, 2023
The French winger has been in impressive form for Bayer Leverkusen this season and he is our player to watch on Thursday night.
Diaby will be hoping to make his mark in the final third and he could cause all sorts of problems for the Monaco defence with his pace, flair and goal-scoring ability.
The 23-year-old has scored 5 goals in his last 8 appearances across all competitions and Leverkusen will need him firing on all cylinders if they are to get through to the next round.
Prediction
Bayer Leverkusen 2-2 Monaco
#UEL Countdown! ⏳🤩🙌
🔁 = @MoussaDiaby_19 🇫🇷
❤ = @takumina0116 🇯🇵 #B04ASM | @bayer04fussball | @AS_Monaco pic.twitter.com/NSOXVr8cbL— UEFA.com DE (@UEFAcom_de) February 13, 2023
Both teams will be desperate for a win here and this is likely to be a close contest.
Neither side are defensive in nature and this could be an open game with a fair few chances for either side.
Both Leverkusen and Monaco have players who can set the game alight with their attacking talents and a high-scoring draw is on the cards here. The two sides are likely to cancel each other out in the end and the Hard Tackle predicts a 2-2 draw.
