Bayer Leverkusen vs West Ham LIVE!
West Ham are looking for another famous European night to remember as they take on Bayer Leverkusen this evening. The Hammers have enjoyed back-to-back deep runs on the continent over the last couple of years but face a daunting task in Germany in the first leg of their high-profile Europa League quarter-final tie on Thursday.
Bayer Leverkusen are absolutely flying under coveted head coach Xabi Alonso amid an incredible 41-match unbeaten run across all competitions that sees them on the verge of sealing their first-ever Bundesliga title in addition to reaching the German Cup final. They will go into this tie as strong favourites, though West Ham know how to pull off big results in Europe and will have seen their confidence boosted by a late Premier League win at Wolves over the weekend.
However, David Moyes’ hopes of an upset tonight have been hindered by the absence of star man Jarrod Bowen due to injury, with Michail Antonio and Aaron Cresswell brought into the starting lineup. Follow Bayer Leverkusen vs West Ham live below, with expert analysis from Standard Sport’s Malik Ouzia at BayArena!
Bayer Leverkusen vs West Ham latest news
Kick-off time: 8pm BST | BayArena
How to watch: TNT Sports
Bayer Leverkusen team news: Seven changes from weekend
West Ham team news: Cresswell and Antonio come in
Score prediction
Bayer Leverkusen 0-0 West Ham
20:18 , George Flood
Standard Sport’s Malik Ouzia at BayArena
When that shot was taken, every West Ham player was inside their own penalty area and the deepest Leverkusen defender was no more than ten yards outside the box. That’s the battlefield.
Bayer Leverkusen 0-0 West Ham
20:17 , George Flood
Standard Sport’s Malik Ouzia at BayArena
When that shot was taken, every West Ham player was inside their own penalty area and the deepest Leverkusen defender was no more than ten yards outside the box. That’s the battlefield.
Bayer Leverkusen 0-0 West Ham
20:15 , George Flood
12 mins: Amine Adli has been the dangerman for Leverkusen early on tonight, looking a tricky customer inside the box as one effort is blocked and the other is parried by Fabianski.
West Ham need to get a hold on him.
Bayer Leverkusen 0-0 West Ham
20:13 , George Flood
Standard Sport’s Malik Ouzia at BayArena
Big, big chance goes begging but big encouragement, too, for West Ham in the way Michail Antonio was so easily able to run away from Jonathan Tah. That has to be the outlet.
Bayer Leverkusen 0-0 West Ham
20:12 , George Flood
Standard Sport’s Malik Ouzia at BayArena
Big, big chance goes begging but big encouragement, too, for West Ham in the way Michail Antonio was so easily able to run away from Jonathan Tah. That has to be the outlet.
Bayer Leverkusen 0-0 West Ham
20:12 , George Flood
9 mins: What a chance on the counter-attack for West Ham!
Antonio speeds down the left, runs at Tah and passes inside to Kudus, whose swept low effort is straight at Kovar.
That was a real opportunity.
Bayer Leverkusen 0-0 West Ham
20:10 , George Flood
Standard Sport’s Malik Ouzia at BayArena
Lucas Paqueta shaped to take a quick throw-in there and straight away Aaron Cresswell was shouting at him and signalling to calm down.
The more West Ham can slow this game down, the better.
Bayer Leverkusen 0-0 West Ham
20:08 , George Flood
6 mins: It’s all Leverkusen early on here, as you might expect.
Almost 80 per cent possession during the early stages as Stanisic’s shot is deflected into the arms of Fabianski via a cute flick from Schick.
Bayer Leverkusen 0-0 West Ham
20:07 , George Flood
Standard Sport’s Malik Ouzia at BayArena
Within half a second of the ball dropping to Mohammed Kudus on the edge of his own box there were four or five Leverkusen players on him there.
Freiburg learned the hard way that once the Ghanaian is up and running, there’s not much stopping him.
Bayer Leverkusen 0-0 West Ham
20:06 , George Flood
Standard Sport’s Malik Ouzia at BayArena
Within half a second of the ball dropping to Mohammed Kudus on the edge of his own box there were four or five Leverkusen players on him there.
Freiburg learned the hard way that once the Ghanaian is up and running, there’s not much stopping him.
Bayer Leverkusen 0-0 West Ham
20:05 , George Flood
2 mins: Vital early defending from Coufal as he bravely heads clear a deep Wirtz right-wing free-kick to the back post.
He stays down after a clash of heads, but is now back on his feet.
Bayer Leverkusen 0-0 West Ham
20:04 , George Flood
Standard Sport’s Malik Ouzia at BayArena
David Moyes did have the option of naming this exact XI but with Emerson playing on the left wing, which is where he finished at Wolves on Saturday.
Immediately, though, it’s clear that he’s very much on the left of a back-five.
Bayer Leverkusen 0-0 West Ham
20:03 , George Flood
Standard Sport’s Malik Ouzia at BayArena
David Moyes did have the option of naming this exact XI but with Emerson playing on the left wing, which is where he finished at Wolves on Saturday.
Immediately, though, it’s clear that he’s very much on the left of a back-five.
Bayer Leverkusen vs West Ham
20:02 , George Flood
KICK-OFF
Underway in Leverkusen!
Will West Ham challenge the hosts’ incredible long unbeaten run?
Bayer Leverkusen vs West Ham
19:58 , George Flood
Here come the teams in Leverkusen!
West Ham are all in white tonight.
Leverkusen donning those cracking black shirts with the red cross.
Standard Sport’s Malik Ouzia in Leverkusen
19:47 , George Flood
West Ham have played in some pretty hostile atmospheres in Europe over the last few years, including in Germany when they went to Frankfurt in the semi-finals a couple of years back.
Leverkusen isn’t renowned as one of the more raucous grounds around but there’s a steady atmosphere building.
Standard Sport’s Malik Ouzia in Leverkusen
19:43 , George Flood
It’s been a common theme of West Ham’s season that the loss of even a couple of key players suddenly leaves their squad looking paper thin and you can see that again tonight in terms of the makeup of the bench.
Seven academy graduates, only one of whom is an established senior player, plus a couple of centre-backs and two forwards who’ve been out of favour all season.
19:39 , George Flood
Standard Sport’s Malik Ouzia provides more pre-match thoughts from a noisy BayArena…
Alonso insists Leverkusen fully focused on West Ham as Bundesliga title awaits
19:36 , George Flood
Bayer Leverkusen could be forgiven for already having one eye on the weekend, when they will win their first Bundesliga title just by matching Bayern Munich’s result or indeed regardless if their rivals and Stuttgart both lose a day before they face Werder Bremen.
However, Xabi Alonso insists that his German champions-elect are fully focused on the task at hand tonight.
“We know what West Ham can do. They have experience in Europe, last season they were champions of the Conference League,” he said.
“We want to go further and starting tomorrow and then next week in London, we have to play to our own game. We are ready.”
(Getty Images)
Standard Sport’s Malik Ouzia in Leverkusen
19:19 , George Flood
So it’s as we expected from David Moyes in terms of his lineup, with the absences of Jarrod Bowen, Edson Alvarez and, to a lesser extent, Kalvin Phillips forcing his hand in the direction it may well have been tempted anyway.
The key thing will be how much Emerson and Vladimir Coufal are able to support the attack from out wide, given they’re expected to be pinned back by Leverkusen’s excellent wing-backs.
Bayer Leverkusen show seven changes from weekend win
19:12 , George Flood
There are seven changes in total for Leverkusen from their weekend win over Union Berlin in the Bundesliga, with only Jonathan Tah, Granit Xhaka, Alex Grimaldo and Florian Wirtz retaining their starting berths.
Matej Kovar replaces captain Lukas Hradecky in goal and there are returns for all of Josip Stanisic, Edmund Tapsoba, Jeremie Frimpong, Exequiel Palacios, Amine Adli and Patrik Schick.
Victor Boniface is a substitute again, while Nathan Tella also makes the bench following a knock and long-term injury absentee Arthur is in the squad for the first time since August.
(Getty Images)
Two West Ham changes as Cresswell and Antonio come in
19:04 , George Flood
So Jarrod Bowen’s absence means a return to the West Ham starting XI tonight for Michail Antonio, supported in attack by Mohammed Kudus and Lucas Paqueta.
The suspended Edson Alvarez is replaced by Aaron Cresswell, with David Moyes likely switching to a back-five/three to counter Leverkusen’s wing-back system.
Lukasz Fabianski likely would have started again in Europe anyway regardless of Alphonse Areola’s injury, while Kalvin Phillips is absent as expected with a hamstring issue.
It’s a very youthful-looking Hammers bench featuring several youngsters including goalkeeper Jacob Knightbridge, George Earthy, Lewis Orford and Kaelan Casey.
(Getty Images)
Bayer Leverkusen lineup
18:55 , George Flood
Bayer Leverkusen XI: Kovar, Stanisic, Tah, Tapsoba, Frimpong, Palacios, Xhaka, Grimaldo, Wirtz, Adli, Schick
Subs: Hradecky, Hincapie, Kossounou, Hofmann, Andrich, Iglesias, Arthur, Tella, Boniface, Puerta, Lomb
West Ham lineup
18:51 , George Flood
West Ham XI: Fabianski, Coufal, Zouma, Mavropanos, Cresswell, Emerson, Ward-Prowse, Soucek, Paqueta, Kudus, Antonio
Subs: Anang, Knightbridge, Aguerd, Ogbonna, Ings, Johnson, Cornet, Mubama, Earthy, Orford, Casey
18:42 , George Flood
Tonight’s stage on a balmy spring evening on the Rhine.
I daresay it will be a damn sight louder in an hour or so…
(Getty Images)
Moyes: West Ham can rise to challenge amid ‘brilliant opportunity’
18:39 , George Flood
So how exactly does one solve a problem like this Bayer Leverkusen behemoth?
David Moyes said last night that he sees such a daunting task as a brilliant opportunity for West Ham rather than anything to be feared, drawing on their recent experience of toppling big teams on the continent.
“I see it as a great opportunity,” he said.
“We’ve had a good run in Europe and played a lot of good teams, and tomorrow we play another one.
“Hopefully we can rise to the challenge and perform well. Both teams have 11 players, so it’s an even game at the start.
“We know Leverkusen are a very good team, but we believe in our abilities.”
(AP)
Bayer Leverkusen eye trophy treble amid record-breaking run
18:30 , George Flood
Bayer Leverkusen’s frankly ridiculous 41-match unbeaten run across all competitions is comprised of 36 wins and only five draws.
They have not lost since the final day of last season in the Bundesliga at Bochum and could yet seal a trophy treble this term as they look to progress in the Europa League and also face second-tier Kaiserslautern in the German Cup final next month.
The icing on the cake for Leverkusen after a truly extraordinary, record-breaking season is that their highly-coveted manager will be going nowhere in the summer, with Xabi Alonso having already confirmed that he will be staying put for at least another season despite strong interest from two of his former clubs in Liverpool and Bayern Munich.
(AP)
Bayer Leverkusen on verge of sealing maiden Bundesliga title
18:21 , George Flood
West Ham would no doubt have liked the Bundesliga title race to be closer in an attempt to distract Bayer Leverkusen.
Instead, after their weekend win at Union Berlin was coupled by rivals Bayern Munich blowing a two-goal lead to lose at minnows Heidenheim, a first-ever championship is essentially guaranteed for Xabi Alonso’s men with six games to spare.
They now have a 16-point lead over Bayern – who had won 11 titles in a row – and need just three more points from here to seal glory.
Leverkusen host Werder Bremen on Sunday in between these two matches against West Ham and could well be celebrating their maiden Bundesliga title by the time they rock up at the London Stadium next week.
Bayer Leverkusen boost as fit-again Boniface pushes for start
18:06 , George Flood
While West Ham have received a crushing blow in terms of their attacking prowess, Bayer Leverkusen have received a major boost (minus the recent injury to Adam Hlozek) with their own.
Though Xabi Alonso’s runaway Bundesliga leaders have not skipped a beat without Victor Boniface over the last four months, his return to full fitness and a likely starting role is more very welcome news indeed.
The Nigerian had scored 16 goals and registered nine assists in only 25 appearances across all competitions before an adductor injury struck in December.
“He has been able to play against Union a little longer,” Alonso said of Boniface yesterday.
“He is one of those who could play from the beginning tomorrow. It is good for us that he is completely fit again.”
(Getty Images)
Moyes gives new update on Bowen injury blow
17:56 , George Flood
Jarrod Bowen’s absence is such a blow to West Ham.
He is their unquestioned attacking talisman and needs just one more goal to hit 20 across all competitions for the season, also registering eight assists.
An injury at this stage of the year as he battles for an England spot for Euro 2024 is far from ideal on a personal level, too.
“Jarrod isn’t with us, he’s twisted his knee and there’s some sort of damage,” David Moyes said at last night’s pre-match press conference in Leverkusen.
“We can’t give any dates of when he might be back, unfortunately.
“He’s an England international and we know how important he is to our team, so he’ll be a miss for sure.
“But we have good players who can come in, so we’ll stay positive.”
(Getty Images)
Bayer Leverkusen vs West Ham prediction
17:45 , George Flood
A draw would be a great result for the Hammers in this away first leg but Leverkusen appear to have a date with destiny.
Leverkusen to win, 1-0.
(Getty Images)
West Ham team news
17:42 , George Flood
As for West Ham, Jarrod Bowen was forced off in last weekend’s late 2-1 win at Wolves in the Premier League after sustaining a knee issue during a collision with Mario Lemina.
David Moyes initially sounded hopeful that the problem was not too serious, though he struck a less optimistic tone at last night’s pre-match press conference – raising fears that the England forward could miss both legs of this tie against Bayer Leverkusen.
West Ham are weakened further by the midfield absence of Edson Alvarez, who is suspended after his yellow card in the last-16 second-leg demolition of Freiburg.
Kalvin Phillips has also not travelled due to a hamstring complaint suffered in training on Tuesday, while first-choice goalkeeper Alphonse Areola is still missing with a groin strain.
(Mike Egerton/PA Wire)
Bayer Leverkusen team news
17:34 , George Flood
Bayer Leverkusen are not at full strength tonight, with Czech forward Adam Hlozek absent due to an ankle injury that saw him limp off during Saturday’s 1-0 win away at Union Berlin in the Bundesliga.
Former Southampton and Burnley winger Nathan Tella is also doubtful with an issue sustained at the weekend.
Young wing-back Arthur could return to the squad after being sidelined since August, while striker Victor Boniface could start a game for Leverkusen for the first time since December after returning off the bench in Berlin following surgery on a groin injury that saw him miss the Africa Cup of Nations with Nigeria.
(Getty Images)
Where to watch Bayer Leverkusen vs West Ham
17:23 , George Flood
TV channel: In the UK, tonight’s game will be televised live on TNT Sports 2, with coverage beginning at 7.30pm.
Live stream: Subscribers can also catch the contest live online via the Discovery+ app and website.
Bayer Leverkusen vs West Ham live
17:16 , George Flood
West Ham face a daunting task tonight as they travel to Germany to take on Bayer Leverkusen in the first leg of their Europa League quarter-final tie.
The Hammers are without star man Jarrod Bowen as they look to cause an upset against Xabi Alonso’s Bundesliga champions-elect and German cup finalists who are riding the wave of an incredible 41-match unbeaten run that has seen the Liverpool legend become arguably the hottest head coaching property in Europe.
However, after back-to-back memorable campaigns on the continent, last season’s Europa Conference League winners know better than most exactly what it takes to pull off a big result on this stage.
Kick-off tonight is at 8pm BST and we’ll have all the match build-up, team news and live updates, plus expert analysis from Standard Sport’s Malik Ouzia at BayArena.
(Getty Images)
