Fresh from the narrow defeat in the entertaining match against Mainz, Stuttgart will be hoping to return to winning ways ahead of the Europa League play-off clash with Rijeka. Meanwhile, Bayer Leverkusen aim to build on the opening victory over Freiburg and no doubt they will fancy their chances of winning at Mercedes-Benz Arena.

Not there yet

For several years now, Stuttgart have been on a significant downtrend and last year’s 12th-place finish should get everyone at the club worried. The Swabians may have reached the DFB Pokal final last term, but having only faced one top flight side on the road to the final, that cannot really be considered a major achievement. The reality is the Mercedes-Benz Arena outfit no longer have the quality needed to match Germany’s best sides and I really cannot see that changing this season. Boss Bruno Labbadia hasn’t seen too many important players leave this summer given that Tim Hoogland and Shinji Okazaki were the only notable departures, while new signings Daniel Schwaab, Mohammed Abdellaoue and Moritz Leitner should bring much needed improvement, but only after they are fully integrated into the squad. Team’s recent results clearly suggest that is no longer the case, with two disappointing draws against Bulgarian Botev Plovdiv and 3-2 defeat to Mainz hardly a perfect start to the season. With five days left until the first leg of their Europa League play-off tie against Rijeka, the Swabians will want to return to winning ways and improve the poor atmosphere in the squad.

Serdar Tasci, Johan Audel, Daniel Didavi, Marco Rojas and Georg Niedermeier are out injured, but new signings Leitner and Schwaab are set to start.

Leverkusen already scoring goals for fun

It seems that some things never change in German Bundesliga, with Bayer Leverkusen’s impressive showings certainly one of them. Die Werkself may not have enough spending power to battle Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund for the coveted title, but they have got to be congratulated for earning the tag “the best of the rest” in one of Europe’s strongest leagues. Unlike their counterparts, Bayer Leverkusen chiefs understand that continuity can often be the key to a successful season, although they are not afraid to replace even their longest serving players if they are no longer playing at the desired level. Such an approach has seen Bayer Leverkusen finish in top 3 in two of last three campaigns, but what is even more impressive is that the team usually hit the ground running early on. This is due to the fact the club tend to make new signings early on so as to allow them to take part in as much pre-season training as possible. This has seen die Werkself enjoy another bright start to the season, with 6-1 and 3-1 triumphs over Lippstadt and Freiburg enough to suggest the team are already close to their top form. With no European distractions at the moment, Sami Hyppia’s side can be trusted to keep the rich vein of form against out-of-sorts Stuttgart.

There are no fresh selection worries for the Finnish coach, with back-ups Niklas Lomb and Dominik Kohr the only players on the sidelines.

Verdict

In an attempt to make amends for the poor run of results, Stuttgart are expected to attack their more illustrious opponents from the off, but such an approach could come back to haunt them. Bayer Leverkusen are playing really well at the moment, and their lethal counterattacks could see them pick up maximum points from Mercedes-Benz Arena.

Top pick: Over 2.5 goals   1.67 (2/3) @ BetVictor

Alternative pick 1: Away win   2.15 (23/20) @ Sportingbet

Alternative pick 2: Leverkusen to score two or more   1.91 (10/11) @ Coral

Unbeatable FREE BET Package!

888Sports have just taken free bet promotions to another level! New customers can now get  £/€/88 in Free Bets + 20 Free Spin Spins + Up to 5 “No Lose Bet”. All you need to do is place of at least £/€/$10 with 888Sports to get up to  £/€/$88 in Free Bets + 20 Free Casino Spins for City Life Slot. And also, make a first mobile bet of at least £/€/$1 with minimum odds of 1.5 to get up to £/€/$5 “No lose Bet” on Mobile.

Get Your £88 in Free Bets!