The match of matchday 8 of the group stage of the 2025/26 Champions League between Bayer 04 Leverkusen (Germany) and Villarreal (Spain) will take place on 28 January at BayArena in Leverkusen. Bayer 04 Leverkusen vs Villarreal: prediction, betting odds and statistics.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen
Bayer 04 Leverkusen lost the chance to finish in the top 8, falling four points short. This happened after the home side lost in the previous round away to Olympiacos by a score of 0:2. Before that the home team had gone three matches unbeaten in this competition (2 wins and 1 draw). Ahead of the final group-stage match Bayer 04 Leverkusen sit in a low 20th position, and to guarantee participation in the play-offs they must beat the Spanish visitors.
- The club has failed to win in 7 of their previous 9 Champions League matches (3 draws and 4 defeats).
- No more than three goals were scored in 9 of Bayer 04 Leverkusen's last 12 games in this competition.
- At home the hosts have not won in this European competition in four straight matches (2 draws and 2 defeats).
Potential Bayer 04 Leverkusen Lineup (3-4-3)
Janis Blaswich – Robert Andrich, Jarrell Quansah, Loïc Bade – Alex Grimaldo, Ignacio Fernandez, Ibrahim Maza, Lucas Vazquez – Malik Tillman, Patrik Schick, Ernest Poku.
First-choice goalkeeper Mark Flekken, defender Edmond Tapsoba, and midfielders Eliss Ben-Segir and Nathan Tella are injured.
Villarreal
Villarreal lost at home to Ajax in the previous round by a score of 1:2. The losing streak in this European competition has reached five matches. Those results meant the Spanish club was among the first to lose any real chance of qualifying for the play-offs. Before the final group-stage match Villarreal occupy the penultimate place in the standings and, together with Kairat, have only one point. In addition to those two teams, only Slavia Prague have yet to record a win.
- Villarreal's winless run in this competition now stands at 10 matches (2 draws and 8 defeats).
- The club has lost each of their last four away matches in the Champions League.
- The visitors failed to score in their last 4 away European matches.
Potential Villarreal Lineup (4-4-2)
Luis Junior – Rafael Marin, Sergi Cardona, Renato Veiga, Pau Navarro – Nicolas Pepe, Thomas Partey, Santi Comesana, Alberto Moleiro – Tani Oluwaseyi, Ayoze Perez.
Defenders Logan Costa, Juan Foyth and Willy Kambwala, as well as forward Pau Cabanes, will miss the match due to injury. Defender Santiago Mourinho will be absent due to suspension.
Referee
Espen Eskos (Norway)
Matches – 7 (International fixtures, 2025/26);
Shown yellow/second-yellow/red cards (counting second yellows) – 23;
Average yellow/second-yellow per match – 3.3;
Shown straight red cards – 0;
Fouls per match on average – 22;
Penalties – 29%.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen vs Villarreal: Match Prediction
Villarreal can already focus exclusively on their domestic competition. Interestingly, in La Liga the club are fighting successfully for a top-4 finish, while in the Champions League after 7 matches they have collected just one point. It is highly likely that the Spanish visitors, having no tournament motivation, will not make an effort to pick up points. It is quite possible they may even extend their streak of away matches without scoring in this competition to five games.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen, however, need only a win. Even a draw could deprive them of any chance to finish in the top-24. In addition, the home side have the opportunity to finally win at home in the Champions League, as they have not won in four consecutive home matches in the competition. It is also worth noting that the hosts have suffered only 2 defeats in their previous 8 home European games (4 wins and 2 draws). Both defeats came against very strong opponents – Bayern and PSG. Interestingly, all four wins in that run were achieved without conceding a goal.
Prediction: Bayer 04 Leverkusen (-1)
