RB Leipzig vs Young Boys

RB Leipzig and Young Boys are set to trade tackles in an exciting Champions League match-up at the Red Bull Arena.

Leipzig took full advantage of Mats Hummels’ early expulsion to beat fierce Bundesliga rivals Borussia Dortmund at the weekend and return to the title picture, reducing the gap on table-topping Bayer Leverkusen to seven points. Meanwhile, their fifth consecutive Champions League group stage appearance has gone according to plan, with Marco Rose’s side securing a second straight knockout qualification with two games to spare. ‘Die Roten Bullen’ thumped Young Boys 3-1 in the reverse fixture and will be confident of securing another success after winning their last seven Champions League games they started as pre-match favorites. But they can’t take anything for granted, knowing none of their last 11 competitive matches have ended level (W7, L4), which suggests this clash could still go either way.

While Young Boys would appreciate avenging a disappointing result in Bern, it’s a bit stretched, even though they’ve racked up a four-game unbeaten run in the build-up to this trip (W3, D1). A 2-0 home win against Red Star Belgrade last time out propelled the Swiss giants to a third-place finish with a game to spare, guaranteeing springtime fixtures in the Europa League knockout playoff round. All things considered, it’s a bit odd Young Boys still hesitate to extend manager Raphael Wicky’s contract. Perhaps inspiring the club to their first-ever away win in the Champions League group stages could tilt the scales in his favor. Yet, since 2016/17, the visitors have only managed one triumph on 20 travels in European competition proper (D9, L10).