VfB Stuttgart vs Bayer Leverkusen Prediction, Odds, Best Bets - Bundesliga

Bayer Leverkusen have been flawless at home and Patrik Schick cannot stop scoring, but they walk back into the BayArena off a 3-0 hiding at Hoffenheim. Stuttgart, 15th and leaking goals on the road, are the visitors nobody envies this week.

The Matchup

Leverkusen's home record is the cleanest thing in this fixture. They have won all three games at the BayArena and conceded once, beating Leipzig 2-0 and Freiburg 2-1 in the last two. Patrik Schick has 6 goals this season and scored in each of the first six matchdays, and a striker in that rhythm changes how a defense sets up. Stuttgart will spend the afternoon worrying about where he is, and that worry is what opens the space for everyone else.

Neither club has named its side yet. The expectation is Schick leading the line in the 4-2-3-1 Leverkusen used at Hoffenheim, with Ibrahim Maza and Moussa Diaby around him. Leverkusen remain without Martin Terrier, Eliesse Ben Seghir, Christian Kofane, Guéla Doué and Kennet Eichhorn.

Loïc Badé is a major doubt after he was carried off on a stretcher following a clash of heads at Hoffenheim, and Robert Andrich said Badé was barely responsive on the pitch, so keep an eye on the Leverkusen team news before placing a bet. Stuttgart are expected to keep Ermedin Demirovic, their top scorer with 3 goals, up front. Josha Vagnoman is out, and Maximilian Mittelstädt is a doubt with a heel injury.

Key Factors

Stuttgart's away form is the crack Leverkusen will push on. They have lost three of their four away games and conceded 8 goals in them, and Friday's 3-2 home defeat by Gladbach made it five defeats in seven. They do not lack effort, they lack control, and the BayArena is a bad place to lose control of a game for even 20 minutes. Leverkusen's one bad day this month came on the road at Hoffenheim, and even that game only broke open late, in the messy minutes around the Badé injury.

The honest counterpoint is that Leverkusen are not deep right now. Five players are already out, Badé is a doubt, and Demirovic is a genuine penalty-box striker who needs one chance to change the maths of a handicap. If Stuttgart score first, Leverkusen need three goals, and this pick gets uncomfortable quickly. But Stuttgart have scored 4 goals in four away games, and asking them to score first at a ground where the hosts have conceded once all season is asking a lot of a team in 15th.

Every pick is published with its line before the game. Odds via consensus sportsbooks at time of writing and move constantly. Must be 21+. If gambling is a problem, call or text 1-800-GAMBLER.