Bayer Leverkusen vs Paderborn

IMS Arena plays host to an all-German exhibition match between perennial Bundesliga tenants Bayer Leverkusen and second-tier underachievers Paderborn.

The end of last season couldn’t have come soon enough for Bayer Leverkusen after a disastrous seven-game winless run in all competitions (D4, L3) condemned them to a sixth-place Bundesliga finish and a gut-wrenching Europa League semi-final exit. Xabi Alonso did an impressive job turning a downtrodden side fighting relegation into genuine European contenders during his first season at the BayArena. However, a dismal 3-0 loss to bottom-half Bochum on the final weekend left a lot to be desired. Despite adding Granit Xhaka and Alex Grimaldo to their ranks in the summer, Moussa Diaby’s imminent move to Aston Villa could significantly disrupt Leverkusen’s attacking output. It’s been dwindling anyway, with ‘Die Werkself’ drawing a blank in three of their last five matches.

As for Paderborn, an 11-point deficit on third-placed Hamburger SV in a topsy-turvy 2022/23 Bundesliga 2. season highlights the importance of pre-season preparations if they’re to mount a more convincing promotion challenge next term. Under-fire manager Lukas Kwasniok seems to have taken this task seriously, as witnessed by Paderborn’s decent off-season start (W2, L1). Before being swept away by Dynamo Dresden last time out (0-2), Paderborn had won their opening two summer friendlies by an aggregate score of 6-1, scoring on either side of halftime in both victories. But they must improve at the back to stay relevant in this match-up after only registering a shutout in one of their last nine games.