Borussia Dortmund vs Bayern Leverkusen: Match Preview

Borussia Dortmund looks to extend their home unbeaten match streak to 32 Saturday in taking on an up and down Bayern Leverkusen side.

That home success will be a persistent storyline until the streak is finally broken. It is something the fans should be proud of, considering the contrast in how inconsistent the club is on the road. Saturday though, that Borussia Dortmund unbeaten streak will certainly be put to the test as Bayern Leverkusen.

Bayern Leverkusen as a club is scratching and clawing for a spot in Europe, currently sitting at 8th in the table. That desperation when combined with the frequently frenetic playing style that Leverkusen employ, is a dangerous combination.

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By now we should all know what Rodger Schmidt likes to do. His instructions call for continued and frantic pressing in their opponents own half. Not only that, but getting the ball at the other end, Schmidt calls for long, low percentage through balls to be played. However, this season Bayern Leverkusen has also mixed in some highly successful possession coming in at an average of 54% per match, good for third in the Bundesliga.

The problems haven’t been in the attack as the visitors as they have scored a total of 34 goals in the Bundesliga, good for fifth. The attack is littered with stars including Chicharito (10 goals), Calhanoglu (6 goals 5 assists) and youngster Julian Brandt (6 assists). On the flip side, defensively the club ranks among the relegation contenders and must be secured against Borussia Dortmund. Bayern Leverkusen has conceded 32 Bundesliga goals, which is horrible.

To put more hurt on the difficult time for Bayern Leverkusen, the club is embroiled in a two-match losing streak. First was a beatdown by the hands of Atletico Madrid by the scoreline of 4-2, then over the weekend, it was a 2-0 loss to Mainz. Bayern Leverkusen even lost to Hamburg since the winter break ended.

The match will still be a test for Borussia Dortmund, however. BVB must cope with the high line of confrontation and quickly bypass it to create chances. This could put a good deal of pressure on the back three plus Julian Weigl to initiate the attack with accurate passing while under pressure.

There is little doubt that Bartra or Piszczek can handle the responsibility, but if Sokratis is targeted and not given his normal out pass to Weigl or the central defender partners, his lack of passing range could be exposed.

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If Borussia Dortmund is able to get past the initial wave of pressure, there will be gaping space and passing options to exploit. Ousmane Dembele should run riot with the likely increased space and we all know how dangerous the rest of the roster can be with space in the attacking third.

All of that said, Bayern Leverkusen may realize the situation and sit back under the danger that BVB presents. It wouldn’t be the MO of Schmidt, but sensibility may force him and his squad to play more conservatively. That, in a nutshell, is what makes this match so interesting.

The action kicks off tomorrow morning at 9:30 AM ET on FS2. Enjoy!

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