The European Champions League round-of-16 wraps up on Wednesday, March 15th with Atletico Madrid of Spain hosting Germany’s Bayer Leverkusen at the Estadio Vicente Calderon. Atletico has a firm grip on the two-legged tie after winning their away match in Germany 4-2 back on February 21st. Atletico enters the match after a 1-0 away win over Granada in domestic league action on Saturday while Leverkusen drew 1-1 at home with Bremen the day before. Atletico eliminated Leverkusen on penalty kicks in the round-of-16 stage in 2014/15.
Atletico Madrid vs Bayer Leverkusen – bet365 Soccer Betting Line:
- bet365 currently lists Atletico Madrid as the favorites to win the 90-minute at 8/13 with Leverkusen 9/2 and a draw at 3/1
bet365 Soccer Bonuses:
- With bet365’s Euro Soccer Bonus you can earn up to 100% more on your returns if you place accumulators on the Premier League, Champions League, Bundesliga, Primera Liga or Serie A. Place a pre-match accumulator of three or more selections on the Full Time Result or Result/Both Teams To Score markets combining teams in any of these competitions, and if successful, bet365 will add the relevant bonus to your returns.
- With the Bore Draw Money Back offer even a goalless draw is never the worst result with bet365 – if you place a pre-match bet on any Correct Score, Half-Time/Full-Time or Scorecast market for any Soccer match and the game finishes 0-0, bet365 will refund your stake if the bet loses.
- With the Each-Way First Goalscorers offer you can have an Each-Way First Goalscorer bet on any match, and be safe in the knowledge that if your player scores at any time during the game we will pay you out! Each-Way bets are settled on all goalscorers at 1/3 odds for unlimited places in 90 minutes play.
Atletico Madrid vs Bayer Leverkusen – Head to Head:
- Atletico Madrid won the first match of this series 4-2 in Germany on Feb. 21st. Saul Niguez, Antoine Griezmann, Kevin Gameiro and Fernando Torres scored for Madrid while Karim Bellarabi scored for Leverkusen and Madrid’s Stefan Savic scored and own goal. Leverkusen won their home leg 1-0 in 2014/15 after Tiago was sent off for Atletico. However, the Spanish side leveled the aggregate 1-1 by taking their home leg 1-0. Atletico then won 3-2 in the penalty shootout after extra time didn’t solve anything. The teams met in the group stage of the Europa League in 2010/11 and played to a pair of 1-1 draws. Atletico has two wins, a loss and two draws in five meetings with Leverkusen and has outscored the German side 7-5.
Atletico Madrid – A Closer Look:
Atletico Madrid enters the contest with three wins, a draw and a loss in their past five games in all competitions and has lost five of their last eight. They still have a slim shot at winning the Spanish league title this season as they’re currently in fourth place in the league, 10 points behind first-place Real Madrid with Real also having a game in hand. Atletico has 52 points on the season from 15 wins, seven draws and five defeats with 49 goals for and 22 against. They’re also just four points ahead of fifth-place Sevilla.
Atletico lost to Real Madrid in the Champions League Final last season as they fell 5-3 in a penalty shootout. It was Atletico’s third appearance and loss in the Final, but they have won several other European competitions. Atletico is aiming for their ninth quarterfinal appearance in the European Cup. They made it last year after beating Dutch team PSV Eindhoven 8-7 in a penalty shootout after both their games ended in 0-0 draws. It was the first time two teams had failed to score a goal in a Champions League two-legged series.
Atletico won their Champions League group stage with five wins and a loss this season while scoring seven goals and conceding two and won all three of their home matches. Overall, the Spanish club has played 39 games against German opposition with 19 victories, six draws and 14 defeats and has outscored them 55-44. They’ve also won seven consecutive two-legged series against German opposition. Atletico has 28 wins, three draws and just two losses in their past 33 home European games. They have 13 wins, two draws and three losses at home overall against German clubs. Filipe Luís and Gabi are both suspended for this game.
Bayer Leverkusen – A Closer Look:
Bayer Leverkusen is struggling at the moment with just one win in their past five contests in all competitions along with a draw and three defeats. They’re basically a mid-level cub in the 18-team German Bundesliga this season and enter this game in tenth place with 31 points. They trail first-place Bayern Munich by 28 points. Leverkusen has 31 points on the campaign with nine wins, four draws and 11 losses while scoring 37 goals and conceding 39. Manage Roger Schmidt was let go on March 5th and has been replace by Tayfun Korkut for the remainder of the season.
Leverkusen is hoping to advance past the round-of-16 in the Champions League for the first time however, the club did win the 1987/88 UEFA Cup. Leverkusen were runners up in Group E this season behind Monaco with two wins and four draws. They had a win and two draws away from home. They were beaten in the 2001/02 Champions League Final when the competition featured a second group stage. Leverkusen has lost just one of their past six away matches in Europe with a pair of wins and three draw, but has just one victory on their past nine Champions League away trips.
The Bundesliga side fell 2-0 on aggregate to Spain’s Villarreal in the group-of-16 in last season’s Europa League after being eliminated from the Champions League following the group stage. Overall, Leverkusen has 10 wins, seven draws and 19 defeats to Spanish opposition and has been outscored 62-43. They have three victories, two draws and 12 losses on their 17 visits to Spain. They’ve also been on the wrong end of the past six two-legged ties against Spanish clubs. Hakan Calhanoglu and Benjamin Henrichs will miss the game due to suspensions.
Atletico Madrid vs Bayer Leverkusen – Takeaway
This game will go to 30 minutes of extra time if Bayer Leverkusen wins 4-2. If it’s still tied, it will be decided by a penalty shootout. Atletico Madrid is 2-4 in European shootouts while Leverkusen is 1-2. Atletico Madrid will advance with a draw or win while Leverkusen needs to win by three or more goals or by two goals if they can manage to score at least five times.
Why Choose bet365?
- Review the bet365 online sportsbook.
- NEW: bet365 Auto Cash Out Feature.
- Check out bet365 Casino Games now! There are some great new Slots and Promotions in the bet365 Casino.
- While you are at it, check out our summary of the Best Online Betting Bonuses now.