Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen, one of the best teams of the 2023-24 season, will face AC Milan on Tuesday while Match 2 of the league stage of the UEFA Champions League at the BayArena. The German side, having won the Bundesliga last season, becoming one of the few undefeated clubs in the history of the tournament, lost 3-0 in the UEFA Europa League final against Atalanta. They started the 2024–25 season with winning 4-0 against Feyenoord in the first match of the European tournament. The team of Paulo Fonseca, on the other hand, struggled a lot in the opening games of the season and also lost 3-1 to Liverpool in the Champions League openerbut when things seemed to be going in the worst possible direction, the Rossoneri managed to win the Derby della Madonnina against Inter and won 3-0 against Lecce last weekend. Let’s now look at the two lists and compare them:
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Goalkeeper
Lukas Hradecky or Mike Maignan?
French goalkeeper Mike Maignan is arguably one of the best around Europe, and he has shown over the past three seasons that his value and individual performances have had a direct impact on the team. On the other hand, Lukas Hradecky was one of the key players for the exciting Bayer Leverkusen in the 2023-24 Bundesliga as the Germans finished unbeaten in the league. If we consider the defense in general, Bayer has a more solid one compared to AC Milan, but the individual comparison tends more for the French goalkeeper.
Choose: Maignan
Left Back Offensive Threat
Grimaldo or Theo Hernandez?
Grimaldo was another of the faces and icons of the Bayer Leverkusen run last season, and was certainly one of the best players across Europe as he scored 12 goals and provided 20 assists in 52 games played in all competitions last year. Figures that do not need to be underlined and explained. Xabi Alonso’s tactical approach helped Grimaldo play as an offensive player, more than a defender like Theo Hernandez, one of the best left backs around Europe. So, if we only need to consider the offensive threat, the choice is pretty easy.
Choose: Grimaldo
Right Side Danger Man
Jeremie Frimpong or Christian Pulisic?
While Jeremie Frimpong, along with Grimaldo and Florian Wirtz, has been the face of Bayer Leverkusen’s winning run over the last year, Christian Pulisic has had an excellent start to the new season. The USA national team winger scored five goals and provided two assists in his first seven games of the season in all competitions, continuing to impress after a positive first season in Italy’s Serie A. He is undoubtedly the most important player for Fonseca as of today , considering the disappointing performances of other key players such as Rafael Leao.
Pick: Pulisic
Dynamic Duo
Wirtz and Boniface or Lea and Pulisic?
When it comes to the dynamic attacking duo, the story is different. Yes, Leao and Pulisic are two of the best players in Serie A, and their talent is not even in doubt, but Florian Wirtz and Victor Boniface are probably the biggest reason for the recent success of the team coached by Alonso. The Nigerian striker scored 21 goals in 34 games last season, while the German talent scored 18 goals and provided 20 assists last season, and he has already scored six goals in the first seven games of the 2024-25 season. We’ve already mentioned Pulisic’s numbers, while Lea only had one goal and four assists in the opening seven goals of the season. Numbers that speak for themselves for this comparison.
Choose: Wirtz and Boniface
Trainer
Xabi Alonso or Fonseca?
It is somewhat unfair to compare the work of Xabi Alonso with that of Paulo Fonseca, as the Rossoneri manager was only appointed this summer and has started a new cycle at the club. After some initial struggles, it seems he is now back on track after winning the last two games against Inter and Lecce, but it is still too early to judge his work. On the other hand, we have one of the best managers around Europe, who won the first Bundesliga title in the history of Bayer Leverkusen last season as undefeated in the tournament.
Pick: Xabi Alonso
How to watch and odds
- Date: Tuesday, October 1 | Time: 3:00 pm ET
- Location: BayArena – Leverkusen, Germany
- Check out: Most important+
- Probability: Bayer Leverkusen -125; Draws +200; AC Milan +320
Don’t miss any of the Champions League. As always, you can catch all our coverage over there Most important+, CBS Sports Network and CBS Sports Golazo Network throughout the season.
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