Bayer Leverkusen see themselves as a top team, a claim 04 coach Gerardo Seoane wants to underline against Bayern. The Swiss can also count on his South American faction to do so.
“We expect ourselves to be able to hold our own against the top teams,” Seoane said on Friday at the press conference for Sunday afternoon’s summit meeting at the BayArena. The Werkself suffered their only defeat of the season so far on Matchday 4 when they lost 4-3 to Borussia Dortmund. “We want to do better this time,” demanded the Swiss, who also sees a good chance of giving Bayern a leg up.
“Both are players with extremely high offensive potential, both are technically very gifted, both make good decisions in the final third and are therefore very goal-threatening. “
GERARDO SEOANE ON FLORIAN WIRTZ AND JAMAL MUSIALA
“We know we’re playing against the strongest team in Germany,” Seoane said, adding, “We know that on a good day we can put in a good performance and make a positive result.” Seoane draws confidence for a positive result from the start to the season so far. “We are satisfied, the team has made a good development,” he said. The game against Bayern – which, to his great delight, will be played in front of a sell-out crowd – is “very welcome for him to see where we are, where we can still improve”. But he does not want to overestimate the summit meeting on the other side: “I don’t think that a single game can be a turning point in the development of a team – no matter what the outcome of the game on Sunday is. “
In order not to have to leave the pitch as losers like against Dortmund, Seoane demands a balancing act from his players. On the one hand, he demands “courage and aggressiveness to press high against Bayern”. On the other hand, “it will also take understanding to defend deep”.
South American trio arrives in time – Tapsoba back in training.
With the exception of the long-term injured, Seoane can count on his complete squad. The South American squad with Exequiel Palacios and Lucas Alario (both Argentina) as well as Piero Hincapie (Ecuador) are expected back in Leverkusen in time after their international appearances. Hincapie is not expected to arrive until Saturday afternoon. Edmond Tapsoba will also be back in the squad for the first time since his serious injury (syndesmosis tear). However, it is still uncertain whether the central defender will play.