Bayer Leverkusen vs. Bayern Munich: Match Preview

The Bay Arena crowd will witness the biggest match in Germany during the weekend.

Schalke might be taking on Bremen this weekend as well. However, those two sides have to deal with "relegation issues" at the moment. Leverkusen is second in the the table while Bayern is sixth.

A loss could see Bayern pummel down the table. Leverkusen will stay in the top three regardless of whether they pick up any points.

Bayern's injury problems were starting to cease until Mark Van Bommel and Martin Demichelis' current issues. Both are doubtful for the weekend.

Holger Badstuber, Miroslav Klose and Arjen Robben remain in rehab while Ivica Olic will not be back until the final third of the season. Franck Ribery saw action last weekend as well as in a midweek friendly against Unterhaching but will most likely start on the bench. Breno might have to get into the thick of things if Demichelis is unavailable.

Leverkusen's Sami Hyppia will return and will probably slot in immediately into the team due to Stefan Reinartz's suspension. Michael Ballack is not ready yet to return to action. Gonzalo Castro will have to make do with a spot on the bench after his return to action last week.Eren Derdiyok might return to action this week while Stefan Kiessling is out injured.

Leverkusen's football hasn't been the football a fan expects from a technically gifted side.

They have dominated some matches and played good football at times. They are the only side which has beaten Dortmund this season. The defence hasn't been particularly porous. In terms of attack, Leverkusen has gotten it right.

Renato Augusto, Sidney Sam and Simon Rolfes along with the ever present Tranquillo Barnetta have won plenty of games for this side. Also, the attacking fullbacks Michael Kadlec and Daniel Schwaab have played well so far. Even with Patrick Helmes's recent dip in form and with Kiessling and Derdiyok out injured, Leverkusen has done well in matches.

Bayern has picked up steam following early season woes and have brushed apart Freiburg, Hanover and Nuremberg. They have scored plenty of goals in the process.

However, whether they can beat Leverkusen is questionable. Leverkusen is quite stable in each area of the pitch while Bayern is extremely unstable in the centre of defence.

Probable Line- Ups

Leverkusen: Rene Adler—Daniel Schwaab, Sami Hyppia, Manuel Friedrich (c), Michael Kadlec- Simon Rolfes, Arturo Vidal- Sidney Sam, Renato Augusto, Tranquillo Barnetta- Patrick Helmes.

Bayern: Hans Joerg Butt—Philipp Lahm (c), Daniel Van Buyten, Breno, Daniel Pranjic- Anatoliy Tymoschuk, Andreas Ottl- Hamit Altintop, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Toni Kroos, Mario Gomez.

Prediction: Bayern will perhaps lose by a goal or play out a draw against Leverkusen.

Final Score: Leverkusen 2-1 Bayern