Leverkusen’s encouraging form reverse
Leverkusen kicked off their top flight campaign with victories against Hoffenheim and Hannover 96. That fine start took a horrible turn, however, as Bayer went on to lose three consecutive matches to top two sides Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund. But it was the 1-0 home defeat to newly promoted side SV Darmstadt 98 which proved to be Leverkusen’s lowest point yet.
Since the away defeat to Dortmund just over a week ago, Schmidt and his side have not looked back, winning the last two league matches against Mainz 1-0 and Werder Bremen 3-0. Two clean sheets is a huge positive considering they conceded eight times in their first five encounters.
Although Leverkusen have put in excellent performances in the last couple of matchdays, the brilliance will count for nothing if they fail to collect three points at home against a side that has registered just four points from seven appearances.
So far this season, Leverkusen have hit the target successfully on just seven occasions, the exact same as their matchday eight opponents. Augsburg have conceded four extra goals compared to Leverkusen. That is the difference between fifth and 16th. It is a stat that distinctly indicates the importance of defence.
The recent 3-0 victory is even better when one takes into account the fact that Hakan Calhanoglu and Javier Hernandez played less than 20 minutes. The pace and finishing of Hernandez plus the mastermind of Calhanoglu makes the pair so important to their side.
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