Cologne v Bayer Leverkusen: Bundesliga matchday 9 preview
Unbeaten at home in the Bundesliga this season, Cologne face a Bayer Leverkusen side that arrive on the back of two straight defeats and have won both of the last two meetings.
The occasion and the table
Cologne host Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga on matchday 9, with kick-off at 14:30 on 8 November 2026.
The two clubs come into the match at different ends of the table. Cologne sit 15th with 9 points from 8 matches, a record of 2 wins, 3 draws and 3 defeats. They have scored 9 goals and conceded 12.
Bayer Leverkusen are 6th with 13 points from their 8 matches, having won 4, drawn 1 and lost 3. Their attack has produced 18 goals, but they have also conceded 16, so their matches have rarely been quiet affairs.
Recent form and home and away records
Cologne have collected 2 wins, 2 draws and 1 defeat in their last 5 matches. Most recently they drew 1-1 away at Union Berlin. Before that they beat the same opponents 5-0 at home. Before that came a 0-0 home draw with Schalke 04, and before that a 0-1 defeat away at Eintracht Frankfurt. The oldest match in that run was a 2-1 home win over Borussia Mönchengladbach.
Home form has been a strength for Cologne. In 4 Bundesliga matches at home this season they have 2 wins, 2 draws and 0 defeats, scoring 6 and conceding 4.
Bayer Leverkusen have 2 wins, 0 draws and 3 defeats from their last 5 matches. Their most recent outing ended in a 0-1 home defeat by Marseille. Before that they lost 2-4 at home to Stuttgart. Before that they won 5-2 at home against Nürnberg, and before that they were beaten 0-3 away at Hoffenheim. The oldest result in the sequence was a 2-0 away win over OFI Crete.
Away from home in the Bundesliga this season, Bayer Leverkusen have played 4, winning 1, drawing 1 and losing 2. They have scored 8 goals on the road but conceded 11.
Previous meetings
Bayer Leverkusen have won both of the last two meetings between the clubs. The most recent, on 25 April 2026, finished Cologne 1-2 Bayer Leverkusen. Before that, on 13 December 2025, the result was Bayer Leverkusen 2-0 Cologne.
Players to watch
Patrik Schick is the top scorer for Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga this season with 7 goals. That accounts for a significant share of the 18 league goals the visitors have scored, and the Cologne defence will need to keep a close eye on him.
How the two sides tend to play
The numbers point to two contrasting profiles. Cologne have been the tighter side: they have conceded 12 goals in 8 league matches, and in their last 5 matches they kept 2 clean sheets. They scored in 3 of those 5, and both teams found the net in 2. At home they have conceded just 4 in 4 matches.
Bayer Leverkusen carry more of a goal threat, with 18 league goals, the higher total of the two clubs. Yet they have also been more open at the back, conceding 16 overall and 11 of those away from home. In their last 5 matches they scored in 3, kept 1 clean sheet, and both teams scored in 2.
That sets up a test of a solid home record against a visiting attack that has shown it can score, but whose defence has been vulnerable on the road.
Estimated win chances
Estimated win chances computed by goal888 from market data, with the margin removed, put Cologne at 25%, a draw at 24% and Bayer Leverkusen at 51%. These figures are estimates derived from market data, not a prediction of the result.
Calculated from market prices, not a prediction or betting advice.
Teams in this story
How we write news
Written from goal888 match data. Every number was checked against the match data before publication. This article was written by an AI system from checked facts. Numbers, team names and sources are checked automatically before publication. We never copy text or photos from other outlets.
goal888 corrects errors as soon as we find them. Every correction that changes the substance of a story is listed at the end of the article with its date and time. Report an error via the Contact page.