Arminia Bielefeld vs Bayer Leverkusen prediction: GERMANY: DFB Pokal betting tips on match 2025-03-31 18:45.
[p]After rescuing a point against Hannover II over the weekend to remain in touch with the race for the 2.Bundesliga, third tier promotion chasers Arminia Bielefeld face off with reigning DFB-Pokal and Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen as they seek a very first final appearance. The gulf wasn’t always so huge between the sides, with Bielefeld competing in the top flight as recently as 2021/22 before suffering consecutive relegations. [/p]
[p]Arminia have already eliminated Bundesliga sides Union Berlin, Freiburg, and Werder Bremen in succession to reach the last four, so they shouldn’t be underestimated. In fact, all four games in this season’s competition came at home and saw Arminia score at least twice, although a visit from Leverkusen may well prove a bridge too far as they’ve been knocked out in all three historical DFB Pokal H2Hs. [/p]
[p]Currently fighting tooth and nail to retain their Bundesliga crown against Bayern Munich, Leverkusen arguably have the strongest chance of retaining any silverware in this competition, with Stuttgart or Leipzig waiting in the final for the victor. Eventually putting Bochum to the sword last Friday, Xabi Alonso’s men have now scored seven times across their last two games in a dramatic uptick after three straight defeats without reply. [/p]
[p]This is the third time across the last six seasons that Leverkusen have reached the final four of this cup, advancing to the final on both prior occasions. Aside from knocking a ten-man Bayern out 1-0 in the round of 16, Leverkusen have faced only lower-league opponents in this run to date. Playing away shouldn’t faze Alonso’s men though, as they travel here having won five of their last six DFB Pokal away games, four of which were without reply. [/p]
[p]Players to watch: Marius Wörl has contributed to five of Arminia’s nine goals in this cup run (G2, A3), with both strikes being match openers at home. Patrik Schick tops the DFB-Pokal scoring charts with four goals, including the crucial 96th-minute equaliser which forced extra time in the quarter-final – since the start of last season he’s scored an incredible six club goals in second-half stoppage time. [/p]
[p]Hot stat: Eight of Arminia’s last nine home games saw both teams score and over 2.5 goals. [/p]
[p][i]Written by Matthew Billon[/i][/p]