Preview: Hertha Berlin vs. Bayer Leverkusen - prediction, team news, lineups

Hertha Berlin will be looking to increase the gap between themselves and the relegation places when they welcome Bayer Leverkusen to the Olympiastadion on Sunday.

The hosts fell 2-0 at Hoffenheim last weekend after winning their previous three matches in all competitions, whilst their visitors bounced back in Europe in midweek after a poor run of form in recent weeks.

Match preview

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As mentioned above, Hertha failed to continue their best run of form this season when they tasted defeat at the PreZero Arena last week.

The Old Lady were completely outplayed by their hosts during the first half, which saw them head into half time at 2-0 down, and then failed to find a way back into the game during a low-key second half.

Captain Dedryck Boyata was shown a straight red card 14 minutes from time to compound the misery for boss Pal Dardai and his side.

However, Dardai had overseen Hertha record three successive wins prior to the loss, with victories over European-hopefuls Eintracht Frankfurt and Borussia Monchengladbach in the Bundesliga being followed by a 3-1 triumph over Preussen Munster in the second round of the DFB-Pokal.

Those league successes have helped lift the capital side to 12th place heading into matchday 11, which leaves them three points ahead of Augsburg in the relegation playoff spot down in 16th.

After struggles at the wrong end of the table in recent years despite the relatively high levels of investment in the playing squad, Hertha will be aiming for a positive result on Sunday to leave them in a strong position heading into the international break, ahead of hopes of a more comfortable mid-table finish come May.

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Meanwhile, Leverkusen's 4-0 victory over Real Betis in the Europa League on Thursday put an end to a disappointing run of form across all competitions in recent weeks.

After winning eight and losing just one of his opening 10 competitive fixtures in charge, boss Gerardo Seoane was suffering the first blip in form since arriving at Die Werkself in the summer.

Since the humiliating 5-1 defeat in the top-of-the-table clash with Bayern Munich mid October, Leverkusen then failed to win in their four following fixtures, which included a second-round exit in the DFB-Pokal to 2.Bundesliga side Karlsruher SC.

However, despite the minor dip, Seoane's side remain in fourth place at the time of writing, meaning a return to the Champions League next season remains a strong possibility if they are able to recapture their blistering form of the opening weeks.

They took the first step in returning to their best by recording the previously-mentioned win over Betis in midweek, putting in a scintillating attacking display to brush aside their Spanish opponents.

Moussa Diaby took his tally for the season to six goals and four assists, by recording two of each, with young starlet Florian Wirtz continuing his sensational start to the campaign by directly contributing to two goals himself.

The duo will be vital to Leverkusen's chances of picking up a positive result in Berlin on Sunday, particularly in the continued absence of top goalscorer Patrik Schick.

Team News

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Boyata's red card last week means he will serve the first of his three-match ban for the visit of Leverkusen on Sunday, with Marton Dardai likely to deputise at the heart of the defence.

Left-back Marvin Plattenhardt returns and should slot back in immediately, which should see Peter Pekarik switch back to his more familiar role of right-back in place of Deyovaisio Zeefuik.

As a result, the defensive duo of Lukas Klunter and Jordan Torunarigha are the only injury absentees to join Boyata on the sidelines.

As for Leverkusen, Schick remains out until after the international break with his ankle injury, meaning Lucas Alario looks set to get the nod up front in his place again.

Diaby missed the defeat to Wolfsburg last weekend due to his one-match Bundesliga suspension, but after his excellent performance in the week, he will return to the forward line.

Timothy Fosu-Mensah and Julian Baumgartlinger remain sidelined with long-term knee injuries, with Charles Aranguiz, Mitchel Bakker and Karim Bellarabi joining them on the list of absentees.

Hertha Berlin possible starting lineup:
Schwolow; Pekarik, Stark, M Dardai, Plattenhardt; Ascacibar, Tousart; Richter, Serdar, Mittelstadt; Piatek

Bayer Leverkusen possible starting lineup:
Hradecky; Frimpong, Tah, Tapsoba, Hincapie; Andrich, Demirbay; Diaby, Wirtz, Paulinho; Alario

We say: Hertha Berlin 2-2 Bayer Leverkusen

This looks set to be an entertaining encounter on Sunday, with us expecting to see plenty of goals in this tie.

Usually on paper this would look to be a fairly comfortable win for Leverkusen, but due to their shaky form of late, we can see Hertha managing to pick up a point against their visitors due to the benefit of home advantage.

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