Bayer Leverkusen will aim to continue the recent winning run in the Bundesliga when they take on FC St. Pauli at BayArena on Saturday.
The 2024/25 Bundesliga season resumes this week with Matchday 13, with the latest round of fixtures starting with the game between VfB Stuttgart and Union Berlin. The action on Saturday will kick-start with five simultaneous fixtures, including Bayer Leverkusen vs FC St. Pauli at BayArena.
Matching last season’s levels was going to be nigh on impossible for Bayer Leverkusen. The reigning champions have already lost once this term, winning only half of their 12 outings thus far in the top flight. However, a decent unbeaten run has taken Die Werkself to the third spot in the standings, seven points behind the table-topping Bayern Munich.
As for FC St. Pauli, the 2024/25 season began with a whimper, with the newly promoted club losing five of the first seven Bundesliga games to remain around the foot of the table. However, the last five matches have produced only two defeats for the Kiezkicker, with the run of results taking them outside the drop zone.
The most recent Bundesliga clash featuring Bayer Leverkusen and FC St. Pauli at BayArena ended in a 2-1 win for Die Werkself. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Bayer Leverkusen
Xabi Alonso does not have any new injury concerns hampering his preparations ahead of his side’s latest fixture. The Bayer Leverkusen manager will be bereft of the services of four first-team players vs FC St. Pauli on Saturday.
Victor Boniface is the most notable absentee, with the star striker recovering from a hamstring injury. The Nigerian international accompanies Jonas Hofmann (thigh), Amine Adli (broken leg), and Patrik Schick (calf) on the sidelines.
With Boniface and Schick unavailable, Nathan Tella will play as a makeshift striker, lining up alongside Florian Wirtz in the final third. So, Granit Xhaka, Robert Andrich, and Aleix Garcia should form a midfield trifecta in the middle of the park, looking to keep things tight in the central areas.
Lukas Hradecky is an automatic pick between the sticks, with Bayer Leverkusen lining up in a 3-5-2 formation in front of him vs FC St. Pauli on Saturday. The central defensive unit should feature Edmond Tapsoba, Jonathan Tah, and Piero Hincapie. Finally, there is no looking past Jeremie Frimpong and Alejandro Grimaldo as the two wing-backs.
Probable Lineup (3-5-2): Hradecky; Tapsoba, Tah, Hincapie; Frimpong, Xhaka, Andrich, Garcia, Grimaldo; Wirtz, Tella
FC St. Pauli
Like his counterpart in the Bayer Leverkusen dugout, Alexander Blessin has many issues to worry about ahead of the trip to BayArena. However, the FC St. Pauli manager has an extensive injury list this weekend.
Soren Ahlers (knee), Scott Banks (ankle), Sascha Burchert (groin), Connor Metcalfe (groin), Elias Saad (ankle), Ronny Seibt (hand), Robert Wagner (thigh), and Simon Zoller (calf) remain on the sidelines. In addition, Blessin is sweating over the fitness of Karol Mets (knee), Manolis Saliakis (knock), and Ben Voll (broken jaw).
Nikola Vasilj should take his spot between the sticks, with FC St. Pauli lining up in a 3-4-3 formation in front of him vs Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday. The central defensive unit should feature Hauke Wahl, Eric Smith, and David Nemeth. Manolis Saliakas and Philipp Treu will likely start as the two wing-backs.
As for the midfield unit, Carlo Boukhalfa should pair up with captain Jackson Irvine in the double pivot. Finally, Johannes Eggestein will lead the line for FC St. Pauli against Bayer Leverkusen, with Oladapo Afolayan and Morgan Guilavogui being the two wide attackers.
Probable Lineup (3-4-3): Vasilj; Wahl, Smith, Nemeth; Saliakas, Irvine, Boukhalfa, Treu; Afolayan, Eggestein, Guilavogui
Key Stats
- Bayer Leverkusen are unbeaten in their last ten competitive home games vs FC St. Pauli (W6 D4).
- Bayer Leverkusen have lost only one of their 20 most recent Bundesliga games against promoted sides (W15 D4), a 2-1 defeat at home to Arminia Bielefeld in March 2021.
- Bayer Leverkusen have suffered only one loss in their last 24 Bundesliga home games, with that defeat coming against RB Leipzig earlier this season.
- FC St. Pauli have the joint-worst offensive record in the Bundesliga this season, scoring ten goals, with seven strikes coming in their travels.
- Bayer Leverkusen have kept only one clean sheet in the Bundesliga this season.
Player to Watch
Florian Wirtz
With Victor Boniface unavailable and Patrik Schick facing a race against time to be ready to take on FC St. Pauli, the onus will be on Florian Wirtz to deliver the goods. While the German international has been solid thus far this term, his output has fallen drastically.
The 21-year-old has amassed nine goals and five assists in 21 appearances in all competitions, although only four strikes have come in the Bundesliga. The absence of a striker means Wirtz must step up and deliver the goods in the final third for Bayer Leverkusen to continue the winning run in the Bundesliga.
Prediction
Bayer Leverkusen 2-1 FC St. Pauli
Bayer Leverkusen’s form has improved with every passing week, but Xabi Alonso’s men do not look convincing enough. In addition, the hosts have the eighth-best home record in the Bundesliga, while the visitors are ninth in the away standings despite managing only two wins in six outings.
So, FC St. Pauli will take the game to Bayer Leverkusen, looking for opportunities to capitalise on any slip-ups from the home side. However, Florian Wirtz and Nathan Tella should deliver the goods, with the latter continuing his momentum from the DFB Pokal win over Bayern Munich. The Hard Tackle predicts a 2-1 victory for Alonso and his charges.