5 reasons Bayer Leverkusen will beat Celtic in the UEFA Europa League - AGAIN!
Moussa Diaby and Florian Wirtz should provide the firepower for Bayer Leverkusen to overcome Celtic in the UEFA Europa League on Thursday.
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1) Leverkusen bossed the reverse fixture
Celtic Park is an intimidating place for away teams to visit – or at least, it usually is. Leverkusen had no trouble in letting their quality speak for itself when the teams met in Glasgow at the end of September, however, returning home with a 4-0 win. Die Werkself’s free-flowing attacks pulled Celtic apart and the scoreline could even have been a lot higher: Leverkusen ended the game with 18 attempts on goal, 11 of which were on target. As the sides prepare to meet each other again, this time at the BayArena and with top spot guaranteed if Leverkusen win, they will be highly motivated to pick up another big result.
2) Inside knowledge
Jeremie Frimpong made 51 appearances in all competitions for Celtic before moving to Leverkusen in January. The 20-year-old right-back has started all 16 of his side's games across the Bundesliga and Europa League so far, and has two assists in the latter after setting up both goals in Bayer’s 2-1 victory over Ferencvaros. The Dutchman took his tally to four Bundesliga assists at the weekend after teeing up Adli for the winner against Bochum. Having won the Scottish domestic treble with Celtic, Frimpong’s teammates will again be looking to him for ways to get the inside track against the men in green and white.
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3) No Schick or Alario? No problem!
Patrik Schick and Lucas Alario usually head the queue as Leverkusen’s first-choice strikers, their combination of strength, aerial prowess and experience providing a handful for any defence. Yet with both likely to miss out through injury here, coach Gerardo Seoane has taken a different approach, bringing in the pace and guile of Amine Adli up front. The Frenchman scored his first goal in Bayer colours in the reverse fixture in Glasgow, and followed it up with a maiden Bundesliga strike at the weekend to secure a 1-0 win over Bochum. Will the visiting backline be able to keep the 21-year-old quiet as he seeks to establish himself in the first-team? And that's before even mentioning the devastating talents of Florian Wirtz and Moussa Diaby causing havoc between the lines to open up spaces for him.
Watch: Adli scored as Leverkusen defeated Bochum at the weekend
4) History on their side
The early stages of the Europa League are usually happy times for Leverkusen. Die Werkself hold the all-time away record in the Europa League group stage (W8, D3, L3). What’s more, Germany is not a favoured destination for Celtic. The Hoops have lost 15 of 24 matches with German opposition (W4, D5). Gerardo Seoane's men will be hoping that history will repeat itself and allow them to further pad that impressive record. What's more, Leverkusen have enjoyed facing Scottish opposition in recent years: Leverkusen defeated Celtic’s Glasgow rivals Rangers 4-1 on aggregate in the 2019/20 Europa League round of 16.
Watch: Seoane talks up Leverkusen super starlet Wirtz
5) Gerardo Seoane, a safe pair of hands
Leverkusen's new coach, Seoane, can be proud of his achievements in the dug-out, especially in European competition. At his previous club Young Boys, Seoane delivered titles and cup victories, and gave a good account of himself in continental competitions. In last year's Europa League, Young Boys comfortably emerged from Group A, finishing second to Roma. Their opponents in the first knockout round? Leverkusen. It was perhaps this meeting that convinced the Bundesliga club's directors to appoint Seoane: Young Boys won the first leg at home 4-3 and then travelled to the BayArena and came away with an impressive 2-0 victory. His achievements and know-how suggest Seoane has what it takes to lead Leverkusen a long way into this season's competition, especially as they come into this fixture three points clear at the top of Group G.
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