Leverkusen – PSG

The reigning Champions League winner will win in Leverkusen.

On Tuesday, the teams with different tournament positions will meet in Leverkusen. Unlike last year's tournament, PSG has started this year's Champions League convincingly. So far, Luis Enrique's team has only faced problems on the national stage, as well as with injuries. Dembélé, Neves, Ruiz, and Marquinhos, who scored against Bayer back in 2014, are still unavailable. On the European stage, which has long served as a special motivator for PSG, the Parisians are performing well so far. In the first round, they defeated Atalanta at home, and in the second, they triumphed in the central match of the game day, managing to defeat Barcelona in Catalonia. Bayer's story at the start of the season has been heard even by those far removed from football. After the second round of the Bundesliga, the 'pharmaceuticals' bid farewell to newly appointed head coach Erik ten Hag. He was replaced by Kasper Juhlmann's coaching staff, which has somewhat stabilised the situation. However, it would be extremely erroneous to consider Bayer's current level comparable to that of their championship season. Wins in the German league are hard earned, and results in the Champions League suggest that the Leverkusen team is not quite up to the elite European tournament. Bookmakers have made the guests the favourites for the upcoming match, offering odds of 1.64 for their victory. Since Juhlmann's appointment, Bayer has not lost a single match. However, in the Champions League, the team has only managed to salvage a draw against Copenhagen (2:2), while at home against PSV, they allowed their opponents to equalise (1:1). In the Bundesliga, the 'pharmaceuticals' have extended their winning streak to three, but they have not yet faced anyone truly serious. On both the European and national stages, Bayer’s average number of goals conceded stands at 1.5 per match. This fact raises concerns among the fans of the German team ahead of their encounter with PSG's attacking line-up. The Parisians themselves have dropped points in three of their last four Ligue 1 matches, but part of the team's problems lies in their mentality. More specifically, a lack of it. Their mindset for the Champions League will be appropriate, which is why a victory in Leverkusen is to be expected.