Bayer Leverkusen will host Qarabag FK for Thursday night’s second leg of their Europa League last-16 contest. Following last week’s terrifying loss in Baku, the Bavarians will be looking to keep their treble dreams alive.
A thrilling return match in Germany with a quarterfinal position on the line is in the works after Die Werkself was compelled to recover from a two-goal deficit to salvage a 2-2 draw in the first leg.
| Top 3 markets | Best odds at bookmakers |
| Bayer Leverkusen to win: ⚽ | 1.18 at Bet9ja |
| Over 2.5 goals: 🥅 | 1.40 at 1xbet |
| Bayer Leverkusen to score over 2.5 goals:✅ | 1.70 at Sportybet |
Bayer Leverkusen and Qarabag: Previous Games
With their dominant performance in the Bundesliga, Leverkusen have continued their winning streak in Europe. Last week, Xabi Alonso’s squad kept their perfect season record intact after bouncing back from a 2-0 deficit in the first leg of this match in Azerbaijan to earn a 2-2 draw. Die Werkelf will be looking to extend their impressive season this week with a league victory against Wolfsburg (2-0).
See our Australian Grand Prix 2024 prediction.
At home, Qarabag leads the league by 45 points, although the Azerbaijani Premier League isn’t even close to being as good as Germany’s Bundesliga. Last week’s tie will give the Horsemen hope after losing both home and away to Leverkusen in the Europa League group stage this season.
Probable Bayer Leverkusen Lineup
Hradecky; Kossounou, Tah, Tapsoba; Frimpong, Palacios, Xhaka, Grimaldo; Adli, Wirtz; Schick
Probable Qarabag Lineup
Lunyov; Vesovic, Mustafazada, Guseynov, Cafarquliyev; Romao, Jankovic; L. Andrade, Benzia, Zoubir; Juninho
Betting tips: Bayer Leverkusen x Qarabag
Check out our predictions of the day for Bayer Leverkusen vs. Qarabag
Prediction 1: Bayer Leverkusen x Qarabag / Bayer Leverkusen to win
In this round, Alonso could be less inclined to make wholesale lineup changes for Leverkusen. Instead, he should start with a few of his elite players in an effort to seize control of the match and improve upon their performance in the first leg.
Traveling to Germany, Qarabag will be looking to get back on track and put themselves in an excellent position to advance. However, with Leverkusen’s depth and strength, the hosts should be able to pull off the upset and advance to the quarterfinals.
Prediction 2: Bayer Leverkusen x Qarabag / Over 2.5 goals
The hosts’ goal-scoring has been prolific in the last several months. In their past eight games, Leverkusen have scored two goals or more in every one of them. Only three of those matches ended with less than three goals. Only one of Die Werkself’s four games played in the Bay Arena during that period had a score of less than 2.5 goals.
In their previous thirteen games in all competitions, Qarabag has scored twice in every game while only managing one clean sheet throughout that span. With two or more goals scored in each of their past five Europa League matches, the Azerbaijanis are a dangerous scoring machine.
Prediction 3: Bayer Leverkusen x Qarabag / Bayer Leverkusen to score over 2.5 goals
Although Qarabag took everyone by surprise in the first leg, Bayer Leverkusen has a better chance of winning because of their home-field advantage and the 6-hour travel to Leverkusen. More than three goals from Bayer are expected in this encounter.