Bayer Leverkusen vs. Borussia Mönchengladbach: probable line-ups, match stats and LIVE blog!

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Schick finished level with Cristiano Ronaldo at the top of the scoring chart at this summer's Euros and claimed the Goal of the Tournament, but Leverkusen's Czech striker is yet to really show that sort of form for his club. However, he did start the opening Bundesliga game of the season as Moussa Diaby earned Die Werkself a 1-1 draw away at Union Berlin. Teenage sensation Florian Wirtz has missed both competitive fixtures of this season with a groin injury, but head coach Gerardo Seoane hasn't written him off just yet for this weekend after he returned to individual training. Right-back Jeremie Frimpong is also a doubt after pulling up during the week, while the club has been busy in the transfer market and signed midfielder Robert Andrich from Union and teenage Ecuadorian defender Piero Hincapie. The former could well be thrown in to start on Saturday, but the latter first has to serve a period of self-isolation after coming in from Argentina.

Ginter and Gladbach played very well on the opening night of the season as they took a point off champions Bayern Munich with a 1-1 draw at Borussia-Park. It was also an impressive Bundesliga debut by teenage American defender Joe Scally playing on his unfavoured side at left-back. So much so that he's set to keep his place in the team even with Ramy Bensebaini back in training after three months out with a thigh injury. New head coach Adi Hütter - whose successor at Swiss club Young Boys was Seoane - could continue with his front four of Patrick Herrmann, captain Lars Stindl, Hannes Wolf and Alassane Plea, but Marcus Thuram and Jonas Hofmann are both pushing for starting places. Denis Zakaria's lack of match sharpness means Christoph Kramer and Florian Neuhaus should continue in midfield.

Match stats

Schick settled matters when the two sides last met on 6 March, but has found the net just twice since and is currently eight Bundesliga matches without a goal.

After succeeding Swiss Super League-winning coach Hütter at the helm of Young Boys in 2018, Seoane went on to claim three successive league titles before switching to Leverkusen in the summer.

Leverkusen went unbeaten through their final four home matches of the 2020/21 season, claiming 10 from a possible 12 points under Seoane's predecessor, Hannes Wolf.

Stindl has scored (two), assisted (three) or both in his last three Bundesliga appearances in a row. He grabbed a brace in last season's corresponding fixture - a 4-3 defeat.

Herrmann has scored more goals against Leverkusen (six) than any other Bundesliga team he has faced.

The fixture has witnessed 261 goals in 78 Bundesliga meetings at an average of 3.3 per game, with at least one in the previous 32.

Probable line-ups

Leverkusen: Hradecky (c) - Retsos, Kossounou, Tah, Bakker - Aranguiz, Palacios - Diaby, Demirbay, Amiri - Schick

Out: Alario (groin), Bellarabi (thigh), Hincapie (not included), Fosu-Mensah (knee), Tapsoba (ankle)

Doubtful: Frimpong (groin), Wirtz (groin)

Coach: Gerardo Seoane

Gladbach: Sommer - Lainer, Ginter, Elvedi, Scally - Kramer, Neuhaus - Hofmann, Stindl (c), Thuram - Plea

Out: Doucoure (Achilles' tendon), Embolo (thigh), Kone (knee)

Doubtful: Zakaria (match fitness)

Coach: Adi Hütter