Atletico Madrid vs Bayer Leverkusen
UEFA Champions League, KO: 20:00 Jan 21, 2025, Metropolitano Stadium
Atletico Madrid's impressive winning streak was ended over the weekend, and now they will host a team with an equally impressive record – Bayer Leverkusen.
Diego Simeone's team achieved almost three months without a loss, and in that time they won as many as 15 consecutive victories in all tournaments. Their streak reached the point that the team took over the top of the table in the Spanish elite. After the recent loss, however, Real Madrid might well overtake them.
What matters now is the fact that Atletico Madrid need at least one more win to guarantee their place in the next phase of the Champions League. And two wins will almost certainly guarantee them a place in the Top 8 and a skip to the 1/8 finals.
The bad news is that they have to take on an equally successful Bayer Leverkusen team, who are also the current German champions. As of now, the visitors have “only” 12 consecutive wins and are simply destroying every team in their path.
These two teams know each other well from their recent matches in the same competition, and their current form makes the upcoming clash even more attractive.
How the bookies view it: Tightest clash in the round?
Bookmakers are definitely expecting a challenging clash because the odds are almost equal. The hosts have a minimal advantage with 7/5, while Bayer Leverkusen are available at 19/10. But if you are interested in a draw, which is quite possible between top-level teams, you can bet at 23/10.
Recent head-to-head: Few teams have met more times in the Champions League
As we already mentioned, the teams have met quite a few times in the Champions League in the last 10 years. We can draw information from as many as eight games in the CL in the last decade. Although Bayer Leverkusen were never as strong as they are now, they still won three of those clashes. Atletico also have three wins in those eight games.
Players to watch: Too many options and all are great picks
Both sides have plenty of elite players who can make a difference in a game. You can pick Griezmann or Alvarez and you wouldn’t be wrong. You can also pick Patrick Schick with his 15 goals this season. But we fancy Florian Wirtz, as the young German has been one of the best players in Europe this season. The midfielder reached double digits in goals and assists in just 27 appearances this season, including five goals and an assist in six CL games.
Probable line-ups
Atletico Madrid: Oblak, Galan, Lenglet, Le Normand, Molina, Gallagher, Simeone, De Paul, Barrios, Alvarez, Griezmann
Bayer Leverkusen: Hradecky, Inkapie, Tapsoba, Mukiele, Grimaldo, Xhaka, Andrich, Frimpong, Wirtz, Garcia, Schick
Anything else catch the eye?
Atletico Madrid have always had a strong defence and that's why a lot of people don't like watching their games. Over the years we have seen many ugly performances, albeit successful ones. Even now their defence is great, but the difference is that Atletico are definitely much stronger in attack and score a lot more goals.
That will certainly matter against Bayer Leverkusen, who will undoubtedly find a way to score at least once. Considering that the visitors have only three clean sheets in their last 10 games as guests, we expect action both ways.
This UEFA Champions League match between Atletico Madrid and Bayer Leverkusen will be played on Jan 21, 2025 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best Atletico Madrid vs Bayer Leverkusen prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
