LEVERKUSEN: THREE MORE WINS NEEDED TO DETHRONE BAYERN

In a season that has seen Bayern Munich’s Bundesliga dominance take a deep dive, itrising to see who currently leads the standings with a clear chance of lifting their first ever Bundesliga title, Bayer Leverkusen!

Coming into this season without the expectation of winning any major silverware, it would be an understatement to say Leverkusen have ‘done well’ thus far as they sit 13 points clear of a deflated Bayern Munich. Dubbed with the nickname, Neverkusen, Xabi Alonso and his men knew it would take something special for them to win any silverware this season and 'special' is what it has turned out to be for Leverkusen.

Unbeaten in all competitions, Die Werkself have just booked their place in the DFB Pokal final for the first time since the 2019/20 season, currently leading the Bundesliga standings while awaiting their Europa League quarter-final clash against West Ham United. With their resilient drive to fight until the ‘fat lady sings’, Leverkusen remain the only unbeaten side in Europe’s top 5 leagues as they stretched their unbeaten streak to 40 games with the 4-0 win over Fortuna Dusseldorf in the DFB Pokal semi-final.

Although they’ve been unstoppable thus far, Leverkusen’s unbeaten run hasn’t clinched them the league title yet. Despite leading their next competitor by 13 points, they still need 3 more wins to round up what has been an incredible first full season under Xabi Alonso.

As things stand, with seven rounds to go, the earliest date on which Leverkusen can be confirmed as champions is Matchday 29, on 13-14 April. That assumes that Leverkusen beat Union Berlin and Werder Bremen, and Bayern lose to Heidenheim and Cologne. Third-placed VfB Stuttgart could also be a factor depending on results.

From the same set of final seven fixtures in the first half of the season, Leverkusen earned 17 out of a possible 21 points (five wins, two draws). Bayern managed six wins and one defeat from their final seven. However, to claim the title, only nine points is needed for Leverkusen, just three wins - would now be enough for Alonso’s men over their last seven games, regardless of Bayern’s results.