Bayer Leverkusen meet West Ham at BayArena in the first leg of their Quarter-Final in 2023-24 UEFA Europa League.
Bayer Leverkusen fought back to beat Qarabag in the Round of 16, whilst West Ham survived a scare to see off Freiburg – who they previously met in the group stage earlier this season.
Team News
Adam Hlozek is ruled out for Bayer Leverkusen after he suffered an ankle injury during their Bundesliga win at Union Berlin.
Arthur (thigh) and Exequiel Palacios (leg) could be in contention to return but Nathan Tella (unspecified) isn’t expected to be available for selection.
West Ham will be without Jarrod Bowen after he was substituted with a knock in their comeback Premier League win at Wolves.
Alphonse Areola (groin) remains absent.
When is Kick-Off?
Bayer Leverkusen host West Ham at BayArena at 9pm CEST (8pm UK Time) on Thursday 11 April, live on TNT Sports 2 in the UK.
Stat Attack
- This is Bayer Leverkusen’s first ever competitive meeting against West Ham across all UEFA competitions.
- West Ham are playing away to Leverkusen for the first time in all European competitions.
- David Moyes’ Hammers are the eighth different English opposition that Leverkusen have faced in any UEFA competition.
- Patrik Schick has scored three goals in Leverkusen’s last two home matches in this season’s Europa League (W2).
- West Ham have kept one clean sheets in their four Europa League away matches this season (W2, L2).
Prediction
Unbeaten across the entire season so far with just one blank at home, Bayer Leverkusen certainly will be a difficult team to quieten given their momentum and fearsome goalscoring threats across the pitch who can trouble the Hammers if seize control early on.
West Ham therefore need to get their tactics spot on from the get-go because if they are second-best as they were in the first half at Wolves before growing into the second half, I do feel that this tie could quickly get away from them if aren’t defensively careful.
In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if West Ham just try and sit deep in hope of getting the tie back to East London but Bayer Leverkusen might just have too much for them here.
Prediction: Bayer Leverkusen 2-0 West Ham
Result: Bayer Leverkusen 2-0 West Ham
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