Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich will be eager to continue their unbeaten runs when they lock horns at BayArena on Saturday.
Matchday 26 of the 2025/26 Bundesliga season will continue on Saturday, which will feature five matches. The action on the day will start with four simultaneous games, including Bayer Leverkusen vs Bayern Munich at BayArena.
The 2025/26 season has been a topsy-turvy ride for Bayer Leverkusen. Erik ten Hag lost his job only a few weeks after he took over as the head coach, and Kasper Hjulmand has overseen some game-changing performances from his charges. However, the former champions have been inconsistent in the Bundesliga, and they have won only one of their last four league games.
The poor run of results has left Bayer Leverkusen sixth in the Bundesliga standings, three points behind fourth-placed VfB Stuttgart. However, Die Werkself produced a resolute performance in the UEFA Champions League to hold Arsenal to a 1-1 draw, restricting the Premier League giants for most of the proceedings.
On the other hand, Bayern Munich may have one foot in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals after cruising to a 6-1 win over Atalanta earlier this week. Meanwhile, the Bundesliga champions have stepped up well after some setbacks a few weeks ago, winning five successive games to open up an 11-point buffer over Borussia Dortmund at the top of the table.
Bayern Munich cruised to a 3-0 win over Bayer Leverkusen in the reverse fixture, with Serge Gnabry and Nicolas Jackson finding the back of the net and Loic Bade scoring an own goal. The Hard Tackle looks closer at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Bayer Leverkusen
Kasper Hjulmand has received a mixed bag of updates on the team news front ahead of his side’s latest fixture. The Bayer Leverkusen head coach may be bereft of the services of five first-team players vs Bayern Munich on Saturday.
Alejandro Grimaldo is the latest absentee, as he will serve a suspension after picking up a milestone booking last weekend against SC Freiburg. Meanwhile, Arthur (ankle), Loic Bade (thigh), and Lucas Vazquez (calf) are in the treatment room, while Eliesse Ben Seghir (ankle) faces a late fitness test to determine his availability. However, Patrik Schick is available after recovering from a muscular injury.
Janis Blaswich will take his spot between the sticks, with Bayer Leverkusen lining up in a 3-4-2-1 formation in front of him vs Bayern Munich on Saturday. The central defensive unit will feature Jarell Quansah, Robert Andrich, and Edmond Tapsoba. Jonas Hofmann and Ernest Poku should be the two wing-backs.
The wide duo will provide width in the final third and protect the three centre-backs. As for the midfield unit, Equi Fernandez should line up alongside Aleix Garcia in the middle of the park, with Exequiel Palacios getting some rest. Finally, Patrik Schick should lead the line for Bayer Leverkusen against Bayern Munich, with Martin Terrier and Ibrahim Maza completing the numbers in the offensive unit.
Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Blaswich; Quansah, Andrich, Tapsoba; Hofmann, Fernandez, Garcia, Poku; Terrier, Maza; Schick
Bayern Munich
Like his counterpart in the Bayer Leverkusen dugout, Vincent Kompany has received a mixed bag of updates on the team news front ahead of the trip to BayArena. The Bayern Munich head coach will be without half a dozen first-team players on Saturday.
Alphonso Davies is the latest absentee after sustaining a hamstring injury. The Canadian wide player has joined Manuel Neuer (calf), Jonas Urbig (concussion), Hiroki Ito (thigh), Cassiano Kiala (knee), and Jamal Musiala (ankle) in the treatment room. However, Harry Kane should be fit enough to start against Bayer Leverkusen.
Sven Ulreich will take his spot between the sticks, with Bayern Munich lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of him vs Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday. The backline will feature Konrad Laimer, Dayot Upamecano, Jonathan Tah, and Josip Stanisic.
As for the midfield unit, Aleksandar Pavlovic will line up alongside Joshua Kimmich in the double pivot. Serge Gnabry will reprise the no. 10 role, with Luis Diaz and Michael Olise being the two wide attackers. Finally, Harry Kane will spearhead the Bayern Munich attack against Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Ulreich; Laimer, Upamecano, Tah, Stanisic; Kimmich, Pavlovic; Olise, Gnabry, Diaz; Kane
Key Stats
- The reverse fixture saw Bayern Munich end Bayer Leverkusen’s 37-game unbeaten run on the road in the Bundesliga, handing Kasper Hjulmand his first defeat as the head coach. Since the 1-0 defeat to Die Werkself in the DFB Pokal round of 16 in December 2024, the Bavarian giants have yet to concede a goal to the former Bundesliga champions.
- Bayern Munich have won all eight meetings with top-six teams thus far in the 2025/26 season by an aggregate score of 33-6. They have averaged 4.1 goals per game in those fixtures, compared to 3.5 against sides placed seventh or lower.
- Bayern Munich have already scored 92 times this season, leaving them with nine games to break the German top-flight record for single-season goals, set by the Bavarian club’s class of 1971/71 (101). Based on their current average of 3.7 goals per game, Vincent Kompany’s charges are on course to end the campaign with 125 in the goals-for column.
- Bayer Leverkusen have the joint-best defensive record, alongside Borussia Dortmund, in the Bundesliga this season, letting in only 11 goals at BayArena.
- Jonathan Tah has not lost in 42 away matches in the Bundesliga, a league record, with 32 of those coming in a Bayer Leverkusen shirt. His most recent loss on opposition territory came against VfL Bochum in May 2023.
Player to Watch
Luis Diaz
While Michael Olise, Patrik Schick, and Martin Terrier were viable candidates for this section, we have picked Luis Diaz as the Player to Watch for Saturday’s Bundesliga clash between Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich at BayArena.
The Colombian international scored once and set up another goal in Bayern’s 6-1 win over Atalanta in the UEFA Champions League earlier this week. Since detailed data collection began in 2004, only Harry Kane (14) and Erling Haaland (22) have reached 25 goal contributions in fewer games.
With 14 goals under his belt, the 29-year-old has also already surpassed his personal best from the Premier League last season (13). So, it is hardly surprising that Diaz is one of the go-to players for Vincent Kompany.
Prediction
Bayer Leverkusen 1-2 Bayern Munich
Bayer Leverkusen will have a few objectives going into the Bundesliga clash with Bayern Munich this weekend. Die Werkself will primarily be eager to end the run of games without scoring against the Bavarian outfit before focusing on getting something from the match.
However, while the home side will succeed in finding the back of the net this weekend, they may not have enough quality to secure a point or three. Luis Diaz and Michael Olise will deliver the goods in the final third, and The Hard Tackle predicts a hard-fought 2-1 win for Vincent Kompany and his charges.
