Bayer Leverkusen vs Union Berlin prediction, odds and how to watch

Bayer Leverkusen host RB Leipzig on Sunday carrying six absentees, a defence that has not kept a clean sheet in ten Bundesliga matches, and the memory of a 4-1 hammering of this same opponent in May. Leipzig arrive in the kind of form that makes comfortable predictions uncomfortable.

Bayern München host Union Berlin on Friday evening carrying one of the most dominant home records in recent Bundesliga memory. The structural mismatch here is significant, and it points in one clear direction.

FC Augsburg host Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday carrying genuine home momentum and a tactical identity that could make this trickier than the standings suggest. The question is whether their structure holds against an opponent who averaged 69 per cent possession across their last ten home games.

Union Berlin welcome Schalke 04 to the An der Alten Försterei on Friday evening carrying some of the most concerning defensive numbers in recent Bundesliga memory. Schalke arrive with momentum and a clear tactical identity, and the structure of this contest could be more straightforward than the betting market suggests.

Bayer Leverkusen host Union Berlin on Saturday looking to leverage one of the Bundesliga's most commanding home structures, but the data tells a more complicated story than the eye test might suggest.

Elversberg welcome Bayer Leverkusen to the Saarland on 29 August in what promises to be one of the more intriguing early-season Bundesliga encounters. The hosts are formidable at home. The visitors are capable of something special. Rafael Mbeki considers what the form tells us, and what it does not.

Ipswich Town have signed Argentina World Cup winner Exequiel Palacios from Bayer Leverkusen on a four-year deal, the headline arrival in a £150m summer spend that signals genuine top-flight ambition rather than survival mode.