Guardiola is desperately hoping his side can ignore the media storm
Bayern Munich travel to the BayArena to face an in-form Bayer Leverkusen in the German Bundesliga on Saturday night, just days after manager Pep Guardiola announced his plans to manage Manchester City in the summer. The league leaders could well come unstuck given the off-field distractions and threat of Leverkusen’s potent attack, which will mount pressure on the Bayern head coach’s shoulders after admitting he had his mind on his next job.
Leverkusen have a deadly attack
Guardiola admitted he was wary of the aerial superiority of Leverkusen striker Stefan Kiessling coupled with the pace of the in-form Javier Hernandez, who has been named Bundesliga Player of the Month for the third consecutive month, and with all the media furore surrounding Bayern of late, could the perennial champions suffer defeat to a Leverkusen outfit chasing a top-four spot?
“Leverkusen are more than just Chicharito (Javier Hernandez) and (Stefan) Kiessling. We are definitely facing one of the best teams in Germany. They play very intense, but that is good for us. It will be difficult. If Leverkusen play high balls in to the box we’ll have problems, but then everyone struggles against Kiessling,” said Guardiola. While a surprise for the Spanish coach to offer such praise to the opposition, it may also be a sign of fear that Bayern could be distracted by the media storm surrounding their manager.
Niggles on the road could see Leverkusen capitalise
Bayern Munich are currently lightyears ahead of the chasing pack atop of the German Bundesliga this season, having dropped just five points from 19 games. They have won four on the bounce ahead of this weekend’s clash with Leverkusen, but their dip in form on the road could see Leverkusen take advantage. Bayern have dropped points in two of their last five away outings and face a Leverkusen side in fantastic form that could see an upset.
The Werkself are coming off the back of three wins and one draw from their last four games in the Bundesliga, and have lost just one game on home soil in their previous seven. Bayer Leverkusen have scored nine goals in the four games, conceding only one for their troubles, and came out on top in their last home game against Bayern Munich in the division.
As a result, the hosts could well repeat the feat on Saturday evening, piling pressure onto Guardiola’s men at a time where they’re desperate to keep under the radar. Victory for Leverkusen could see them finish the weekend in the top-four so there’s plenty to play for.
Could Bayer Leverkusen see past Bayern Munich in the German Bundesliga this weekend?
- Soccer News Like
- Be the first of your friends!
