Mainz vs. Bayer Leverkusen Betting Preview – Bundesliga, October 17, 2020

Mainz hosts Bayer Leverkusen at Opel Arena on Saturday, October 17, as the German Bundesliga continues with Matchday 4 after a short break due to the international competitions.

Both these teams are still winless, so I’m looking for a great game in Mainz, as they will be fired up to finally grab all three points.

Therefore, here’s my best Mainz vs. Leverkusen betting pick along with the latest odds and all key betting tips and trends.

The visitors are firm favorites to win here, and I’m not surprised considering the fact that Mainz has dropped all its three games thus far.

The 05ers are sitting bottom of the Bundesliga standings alongside Schalke and FC Koln. On the other side, Leverkusen is laying at the 14^th spot with three points out of the first three rounds. That’s a very disappointing record for Bayer, for sure.

After a 3-1 defeat at RB Leipzig in the opener and a 4-1 home loss to Stuttgart in Week 2, the 05ers decided to change something and hired Jan-Moritz Lichte as their new manager.

However, Lichte’s debut was a complete disaster, as Mainz was smashed by Union Berlin 4-0 on the road in the previous round. The 05ers took only five shots towards Union Berlin’s goalie and none of them went on target.

Furthermore, the 05ers have some serious defensive issues. At least, they don’t have any injury worries, so Lichte can field his best eleven against Bayer.

On the other side, Leverkusen started the new Bundesliga season with a goalless draw at Wolfsburg. After that, Bayer earned a couple of 1-1 ties against RB Leipzig at home and Stuttgart on the road.

Leverkusen’s schedule wasn’t easy, but their fans are still disappointed with just three points out of the first three rounds.

Patrik Schick leads the way for Bayer with two goals in four appearances, but the 24-year-old striker won’t play this Saturday due to a muscle injury. Full-back Santiago Arias is sidelined with a fractured fibula, while all other players are ready to go.

On paper, Leverkusen is a much better team than Mainz, but I would avoid taking the side bet. Both teams will be fired up to get one into the win column, as I’ve already mentioned, so Mainz could finally get things going, at least on the offensive end.

Last year, Mainz failed to score in two meetings with Bayer, suffering a couple of 1-0 defeats. Leverkusen has won five straight games against Mainz, so if you like to follow betting trends, you won’t avoid the side bet.

Anyway, I would rather stick with goals, taking both sides to score along with the over 2.5 goals in total.

I’m a bit surprised with three inefficient Leverkusen’s games at the start of the season. Mainz’s defense has been a joke thus far, but the 05ers certainly stand a chance of finding the net once.

Also, Leverkusen has conceded in nine of its previous 11 outings away from home, while six of the previous seven encounters between Bayer and the 05ers in Mainz saw both teams scoring and more than a couple of goals on the scoreboard.