The time for Florian Wirtz’s risky early comeback from an ankle injury has officially come. Xabi Alonso confirmed as Friday’s press conference that the Bayer Leverkusen playmaker will play – and possibly even start – against Union Berlin on Saturday afternoon. With six Bundesliga fixtures remaining, Leverkusen are prepared to place a huge bet on their remaining title race hopes.
The defending champions currently trail Bayern Munich by six points. Bayern face a resurgent Borussia Dortmund in the Saturday late kick-off. Niko Kovac’s BVB have won their last two league fixtures against quality teams Freiburg and Mainz. Both Bayern and Dortmund are coming off Champions League defeats, meaning the outcome of the highly anticipated Topspiel may be difficult to predict.
Leverkusen, meanwhile, can’t necessarily take Union Berlin for granted. Steffen Baumgart’s Eisernen nicked a draw off Bayern three rounds back. A win against Wolfsburg at home last Sunday gives the Köpenickers two consecutive league victories. Alonso made it clear that his team would be relying on Wirtz in this crucial fixture.
“He’s fit and will be in the squad,” Alonso bluntly stated on Friday. “He can play and can even play from the start. With Florian, we are clearly a better team. Flo is our difference maker. We need him in order to find our flow again.”
GGFN | Peter Weis
