RB Leipzig will be aiming to close the gap on the top four positions in the Bundesliga when they host Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday.
The visitors, meanwhile, are only one point clear of the relegation places ahead of their trip to the Red Bull Arena.
Match preview
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There is little doubt that Leipzig have significantly picked up since replacing Domenico Tedesco with Marco Rose in their managerial dugout earlier this season, with the DFB-Pokal winners unbeaten in each of their eight matches since returning from the international break.
Die Roten Bulen pulled off a remarkable comeback last weekend to come back from three goals down away to Augsburg and claim a precious point, with Andre Silva, Christopher Nkunku and Hugo Novoa all scoring in the final 20 minutes of normal time after Iago's second half dismissal for the hosts completely changed the nature of the game.
Rose's side took a giant step towards progressing to the Champions League knockout stages, too, by beating the holders Real Madrid 3-2 in midweek. Josko Gvardiol and Nkunku had provided the hosts with a two-goal lead in the early stages before Vinicius Junior pulled one back before half time, but Timo Werner sealed all three points in the latter stages of the match.
As such, Leipzig will be through to the last-16 providing that they avoid defeat against Shakhtar Donetsk in Warsaw next week. In the meantime, with a four-point deficit to Eintracht Frankfurt in fourth place in their domestic league table, Rose and his players will be hoping to close that gap by beating Leverkusen on Saturday.
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Leverkusen bowed out of the Champions League on Wednesday after a 2-2 draw away to Atletico Madrid, with both teams set to fight for third spot and a place in the Europa League as a result next week.
There was late drama as Atletico were awarded a penalty for a handball despite the full-time whistle having already been blow, but Lukas Hradecky saved Yannick Carrasco's effort before the bar was struck from the rebound amid chaotic scenes at the Metropolitano Stadium.
Since beating struggling Schalke 04 by four goals to nil in his first game in charge earlier this month, Xabi Alonso is now winless in four matches, although Jeremie Frimpong did at least rescue a point for his side in a 2-2 draw against Wolfsburg last week.
Die Werkself could climb above the Wolves and Hertha Berlin into 13th position in the table by causing an upset in Leipzig on Saturday, although Alonso is likely to be content with any positive result given his side's recent struggles.
Team News
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Leipzig will remain without Peter Gulasci, Konrad Laimer and Lukas Klostermann, with none of the injured trio likely to feature before next month's World Cup.
Werner will almost certainly return to Rose's starting XI having scored from the bench in Europe on Tuesday, with Emil Forsberg likely to make way on the left flank, but otherwise the 46-year-old is unlikely to make any changes after such a strong showing against the 14-time European champions.
Leverkusen, meanwhile, will travel without creative influences Florian Wirtz and Sardar Azmoun, with the former hoping to return to limited action in the coming weeks after sustaining a serious knee injury last season.
Charles Aranguiz, Kerem Demirbay, Exequiel Palacios and Karim Bellarabi are all major doubts, too, potentially leaving Alonso incredibly short of midfield options.
Nadiem Amiri is likely to partner Robert Andrich in that area of the pitch, with Jonathan Tah returning to the defensive unit.
RB Leipzig possible starting lineup:
Blaswich; Simakan, Orban, Gvardiol, Raum; Haidara, Schlager; Szoboszlai, Nkunku, Werner; Silva
Bayer Leverkusen possible starting lineup:
Hradecky; Kossounou, Tah, Tapsoba; Frimpong, Andrich, Amiri, Bakker; Diaby, Schick, Hudson-Odoi
We say: RB Leipzig 3-2 Bayer Leverkusen
Both teams are far more proficient offensively than they are defensively, so we can envisage an entertaining match in Leipzig on Saturday.
The hosts have been in excellent form of late and it would be a surprise if Leverkusen were to end their unbeaten run considering Alonso's side's struggles this season. We predict a home win with both teams to score.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Brett Curtis
