FC Bayern vs Leverkusen: Score prediction for DFB-Pokal round of 16 tie
Jamal Musiala
I feel like I'm going to sound like a broken record here, but Jamal Musiala is the true difference maker for nearly all offensive moves that Die Roten have.
Musiala is the heart and soul of this body of work that is the Bayern Munich squad. Nearly everything runs through him going forward, and he seems to understand that perfectly. When they needed him the most in their crucial match against their bitter rivals of the North, he showed that they could rely on him and stepped up by scoring a vital goal in earning Bayern a draw against Borussia Dortmund.
A young leader on the pitch, he also sets an example for his teammates by working hard on the defensive side of the ball and tracking back to win important defensive duels. This kind of effort will make it a heavily demanding task on Granit Xhaka and Florian Wirtz (regardless of how talented this kid is) to tear a hole through the midfield like they are used to. I think that if anybody is going to be the difference maker in this match for FC Bayern on either side of the pitch, it has to be him.
Score prediction
When it comes down to it, the biggest battle on the pitch for this match will be between the two youngsters--Musiala and Wirtz-- and I genuinely believe that one of them will be the true decider.
On one side you have Florian Wirtz, who is a crafty, technical young genius with the ball at his feet; on the other side you have Jamal Musiala, who is a smooth operator and likes to control the game when he can.
The truth is, it is a very difficult thing to predict and I think that both of these teams are great in their own ways, are very well coached, and have a ton of difference makers on either side of the ball. This game won't be a blowout--far from it, actually--and I think that the score will reflect the respect these two teams have for each other offensively. In a low-scoring, highly-intense matchup, I think that FC Bayern Munich will win with a score of 1-0 and ride their confidence to another DFB-Pokal trophy ceremony come May.