DFB Pokal Final: Kaiserslautern x Bayer Leverkusen, Match Preview, Odds and Predictions(25/05/2024)

In Saturday's DFB-Pokal final at the Olympiastadion, Bayer Leverkusen, with their hopes of immortality and a fantastic treble in the dumpster, at least want to finish an otherwise outstanding 2023–24 season with a domestic double against Kaiserslautern.

In Wednesday's Europa League final loss to Atalanta BC, Xabi Alonso's team ended their record-breaking undefeated run, while their second-tier opponents are vying for their third DFB-Pokal crown.

Head To Head And Previous Matches

After winning their fourth and most recent Bundesliga title in the 1997–98 season, Kaiserslautern, who had previously dominated the DFB-Pokal in 1990 and 1996, have been grinding it out in the 2. Bundesliga, but they may now relive their glory days—at least for one night.

The Red Devils only had to overcome one top-flight opponent in Koln to reach the 2023–24 final. Still, their most noteworthy victory came against third-tier Saarbrucken, who sent Bayern Munich packing to the semifinals before Kaiserslautern halted their incredible run.

After putting two past Saarbrucken without reply, the second-tier team progressed to DFB-Pokal final number eight. However, Kaiserslautern had won the runners-up spot in five of their previous seven championship games, most recently against Bayern Munich in the 2002–03 season.

The Red Devils' lackluster 2. The Bundesliga season has also not given them much confidence, as they could only manage a 13th-place finish with 39 points from 34 games. However, their last match concluded in a 5-0 rout of Eintracht Braunschweig.

That demolition was the third victory in four games for Friedhelm Funkel's free-scoring team, who have scored at least three goals in each of those victories and are on a 12-game scoring run in all competitions. Still, a wounded Leverkusen is a very dangerous opponent.

Before traveling to Dublin for the Europa League final, Bayer Leverkusen was fifty-one not out; still, the incredible Ademola Lookman accomplished what hundreds of bad failed to achieve at the Aviva Stadium.

Lookman's excellent treble ended Atalanta BC's 61-year wait for another major trophy. He became the first African player to score two goals in a big UEFA final, let alone a magnificent hat-trick. La Dea also played Leverkusen off the park for the full ninety minutes.

The Bundesliga champions may become the sixth team in history to win the German domestic double. However, they can still proudly claim to have won the top-flight title without a single defeat despite not ending the season with three trophies and the Invincibles label emblazoned on their chest.

Only Bayern, Borussia Dortmund, Werder Bremen, Kon, and Schalke have been Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal champions in a single season. Leverkusen scored an incredible 23 goals in their first five DFB-Pokal games this season—at least three in each game.

The two teams haven't played each other often since Kaiserslautern plays in the second division. Still, Leverkusen won 2-0 after extra time in the 2014–15 DFB-Pokal last 16, one year after the Red Devils defeated them 1-0 in the 2013–14 quarterfinals. That year, Sami Hyypia was leading Werkself; today, another former Liverpool player is trying to make amends in Dublin.

On the latter day of the two, however, he saw red. Defender Almamy Toure of Kaiserslautern will serve his suspension for aggressive behavior just in league play this Bundesliga season so that he may play in Funkel's backline at the Olympiastadion.

Top scorer Ragnar Ache, who scored 16 goals in the second division in 2023–24, is, however, now questionable because of an Achilles problem, while Jan Elvedi, the twin brother of Nico Elvedi of Borussia Monchengladbach, is also dealing with a calf problem.

Ben Zolinski, Hendrick Zuck, and Julian Niehues are all restricted to the Kaiserslautern treatment room due to long-term knee injuries, but Funkel will be in excellent hands if the prolific Ache fails his late fitness test; playmaker Marlon Ritter scored a hat-trick in the five-goal demolition of Braunschweig.

While Leverkusen may have left Dublin with their dignity intact, Alonso seems to have avoided losing any of his men to injury,. St l, given the short turnaround and the long journey home, a once-over will need to be done for every player.

Alonso is spoilt for choice regarding potential changes since Leverkusen's medical room is now vacant, and the much sought-after Florian Wirtz is healthy enough to start and play 81 minutes of the final. The Spaniard should take advantage of this chance.

After just being added to the bench on Wednesday, Victor Boniface and Patrik Schick will be fighting for the lead, while Robert Andrich, Nathan Tella, and Odilon Kossounou could also gain from some much-needed rotation in all three-thirds of the Berlin field.

Our Predictions

Bayer Leverkusen to win halftime and fulltime @1.51 on Sky247.ng

Despite Leverkusen's continental setbacks, Kaiserslautern could have been worried about this very situation since Alonso's team has a lot of errors to make in the DFB-Pokal final and is spoiled with capable choices for defensive, midfield, and even offensive substitution. Leverkusen will end their Europa League suffering and establish their double-winners status. The Red Devils will undoubtedly put up an intense fight and can rely on their propensity for scoring goals, but only to a certain extent.

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