Bayer Leverkusen have a must-win game against Sparta Prague with nothing to play for after they were knocked out of the tournament after their last loss, though hardly anyone ever thought they had a chance at all. Atletico Madrid reminded Bayer Leverkusen fans what it's like to lose a game.
It had only happened twice in all competitions so far, with Xabi Alonso's team also having 12 consecutive wins. What is harder to fathom is that Leverkusen led until the 52nd minute and Atletico were red-carded in the 23rd minute. Yet the hosts came through to turn the match around and make Bayer Leverkusen's task more difficult. They are currently in eighth place in the standings and need a win by a big score to secure their place among the top eight.
Fortunately, Sparta Prague have no reason to play and a big result is highly probable. The visitors from the Czech Republic are out of the competition after five losses in seven rounds. Their campaign started with a win and a draw, but things quickly turned around. Sparta conceded 18 goals in their last five Champions League games and lost each one. It should be noted that so far they are performing decently compared to most other teams at the bottom. At least they scored some goals and showed some spirit against bigger teams like Feyenoord.
But they are highly likely to lose one more time against Leverkusen. You'd hardly expect to find value in this particular game. Their match was in the group stage and the German side won Florian Wirtz is Bayer Leverkusen's most impactful player in the Champions League this season but he has had some struggles in the last few rounds. He hasn't scored since Leverkusen dismantled Salzburg three rounds ago. This is the best time to step up and lead his team to the quarter-finals.
Bayer Leverkusen are yet to concede a goal as hosts in this Champions League campaign. But they have also scored just seven, which is quite low compared to quite a few of the other favourites to qualify. That means Leverkusen have to find a way to win by a bigger margin in this final game. There are as many as 16 teams that can displace them if they lose this match. Nothing is certain and Alonso's players have no room for error. Unfortunately, the odds are not very good.
