Bundesliga: Freiburg Looking to Leapfrog Slumping Leverkusen

SC Freiburg vs Bayer Leverkusen

Bayer Leverkusen’s third spot in the Bundesliga is under threat once again as they travel to fifth-placed Freiburg this weekend.

Leverkusen missed a glorious chance to pull away from the chasing pack as they could only draw with fourth-placed Hoffenheim in midweek despite taking a two-goal lead.

Meanwhile, Freiburg also drew away to Union Berlin as they are suddenly struggling to find the consistency they showed early in the season.

Still, the Bundesliga 2021 betting odds figure to be tight in this battle between two of the league’s top-five teams.

Talking Points

Freiburg struggling to find early-season form

Freiburg’s Bundesliga 2021 results have gone from fantastic to frightful. They have won just once in their last six games since losing their unbeaten start against Bayern, with four defeats and a draw against Union Berlin last time out.

Granted, their one win was a 6-0 hammering of Borussia Monchengladbach. But they also lost at home to both Eintracht Frankfurt and Hoffenheim and away to bottom-half club Bochum.

Freiburg’s defence has not been as solid as it once was at the start of the year, but they still have the best defensive record in the league with just 15 goals conceded in 16 games.

Keven Schlotterbeck, brother of rising star centre-back Nico, was brilliant in his first start of the season against Union and may have done enough to keep that place.

But on the other end of the pitch, Freiburg’s forwards are struggling to provide consistent production. After a fast start with three goals, Jeong Woo-Yeong has now failed to score in the last two months. Meanwhile, Lucas Holer has four goals in 16 games.

Centre-backs Nicho Schlotterbeck and Philipp Lienhart have been the team’s two in-form goalscorers with two goals apiece in the last four games. Lienhart is actually the team’s co-leading scorer with four games, with none coming from the penalty spot.

That lack of firepower has hurt Freiburg’s form at home. They have just 11 points and 11 goals in seven home games, with three wins, two draws, and two defeats.

Leverkusen’s leaky defence can’t hold leads, but Schick still hot

Bayer Leverkusen missed a great chance to extend their lead on third place in midweek as they drew 2-2 home against Hoffenheim. For the second game in a row, they went 2-0 up thanks to a brace from the in-form Patrik Schick, but like their 5-2 loss to Eintracht Frankfurt, they squandered that lead by conceding two goals in the last 10 minutes.

Bayer Leverkusen are now winless in their last three games in all competitions, with two defeats and a draw.

Moussa Diaby was sent off in stoppage time against Hoffenheim for a second yellow card, which means he will be suspended against Freiburg. Diaby’s absence will likely mean a rare Bundesliga start for Argentine Lucas Alario.

On the bright side for Bayer Leverkusen, Schick is still on fire. The Czech striker now has 16 goals on the season – still two behind Robert Lewandowski for the league lead – with half of those goals coming in the last three games. As long as Schick and Florian Wirtz are playing, Leverkusen are still a threat to score some goals.

In defence, right-back Jeremie Frimpong will be back from his one-game suspension, but left-back Mitchel Bakker is still out with an ankle injury. Young Piero Hincapie has done a good job deputising, though. The 19-year-old Ecuadorian has a goal and an assist in his last three starts.

Leverkusen have been impressive away from home this season, with four wins, three draw, and just one defeat in their eight games outside the BayArena. That one defeat came recently against Eintracht Frankfurt, where they went 2-0 up but conceded five goals without reply.

History

Bayer Leverkusen have an 11-4 edge over Freiburg in their last 22 league meetings, with seven draws.

At one point, Leverkusen had gone a stretch of seven games without losing to Freiburg, with four wins and three draws. That included a 4-2 win in this fixture last season. Lucas Alario bagged a brace for Leverkusen.

However, Freiburg got their revenge by beating Leverkusen in the reverse fixture. Lucas Holer, who scored in both games against Leverkusen last season, scored the winning goal.

Betting Tip 

	SC Freiburg vs Bayer Leverkusen	1X2 Bayer Leverkusen @ 2.47
	December 19, 22:30 (GMT+8)

SBOTOP odds have Leverkusen priced as very slight 2.47 favourites over Freiburg, who have 2.75 odds to pick up the home win. Meanwhile, a draw is at 3.30.

While Freiburg’s defence will be tough to break down, their attack remains unreliable. On the other hand, Leverkusen have the in-form striker in Schick who can score the decisive goal in what could be a very competitive match.

With those factors in mind, look for Leverkusen to continue their impressive away form this season by bringing down Freiburg.

 

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