After finishing third in a group that contained Porto, Club Brugge and Atletico Madrid, Bayer Leverkusen host AS Monaco in the Europa League on Thursday night, kick-off 21:00 local time.
After successive defeats against Borussia Dortmund and Augsburg, Bayer Leverkusen come into this game following a 3-1 win against relegation threatened Hoffenheim. Monaco meanwhile put three past PSG at the weekend.
Matching Hoffenheim’s 3-4-3 on Saturday, Kicker expects Xabi Alonso to revert back to a 4-2-3-1. Jeremie Frimpong could play an advanced role, meaning Moussa Diaby would switch to the left-flank, with Odilon Kossounou coming in at right-back.
After playing in the front three against Hoffenheim, expect Florian Wirtz to play a little deeper, but to be the most advanced player of the three-man midfield.
Alonso will also have plenty of options on the bench. For the first time since November, Patrik Schick is expected to be back in the squad, whilst Amine Adli and Sardar Azmoun remain attacking options.
Predicted Bayer Leverkusen XI vs AS Monaco
Lukáš Hrádecký – Odilon Kossounou, Jonathan Tah, Edmond Tapsoba, Piero Hincapié – Robert Andich, Kerem Demirbay, Florian Wirtz – Jeremie Frimpong, Moussa Diaby, Adam Hložek.
GGFN | Daniel Pinder
