Union SG vs Leverkusen Europa League quarter-final second leg preview: Where to watch, kick-off time, predicted line-ups

Union SG and Leverkusen meet in their UEFA Europa League quarter-final second leg on Thursday 20 April.

Where to watch Union SG vs Leverkusen on TV

Fans can find their local UEFA Europa League broadcast partner(s) here.

What do you need to know?

Florian Wirtz's late effort may have denied Union SG what would have been a magnificent first-leg result at the BayArena, but the Belgian club – who stretched their unbeaten away run in Europe to five games in Leverkusen – will be confident of progressing after creating numerous opportunities against Xabi Alonso's in-form side.

Leverkusen were not without their chances either, but they will need to be more clinical in Belgium after registering only two efforts on target over the 90 minutes. In Wirtz, who has now registered five goal involvements in as many Europa League appearances this term, they have a player who might just prove the difference in the return leg.

Predicted line-ups

Union SG: Moris; Nieuwkoop, Kandouss, Burgess, Machida, Lapoussin; Teuma, Amani, Lynen; Vertessen, Boniface, Adingra
Misses next match if booked: Lapoussin, Lynen, Moris
Suspended: Van der Heyden

Leverkusen: Hradecky; Tapsoba, Tah, Kossounou; Frimpong, Andrich, Demirbay, Hincapié; Diaby, Wirtz, Adli
Misses next match if booked: Bakker, Demirbay, Hincapié, Kossounou, Wirtz
Suspended: None

Form guide

Union SG
Form (all competitions, most recent first): WDDWWW
Where they stand: 2nd in Belgian First League

Leverkusen
Form (all competitions, most recent first): DDWWWW
Where they stand: 6th in German Bundesliga

Expert predictions

Brecht Schelstraete, Union SG reporter
Just about anything is possible in this quarter-final. Union SG are having a fairy-tale season, their progress to the latter stages in Europe matched by a strong showing back in Belgium, where they are in the hunt for a first top-flight title since 1934/35. Leverkusen have experience and street smarts, but Les Unionistes demonstrated in Germany that they are here on merit.

James Thorogood, Leverkusen reporter
Leverkusen have had a tendency of late to let opportunities slip at the business end of European campaigns. Unbeaten in 11 in all competitions since their stunning 3-2 win over Monaco in the second leg of their Europa League play-off, Die Werkself could well buck that gloomy trend. Florian Wirtz's first-leg equaliser has put them in sight of their first European semi-final since the 2001/02 UEFA Champions League.

What the coaches say

Karel Geraerts, Union SG coach: "We can't afford to give them any space, but at the same time we want to qualify, so we must continue to be attacking. Since the start of the season, we have had a clear idea of how we want to play. Self belief has been one of our strengths and so nothing changes here. We play to win."

Xabi Alonso, Leverkusen coach: "The tie is still very open, in my opinion. We will have two very motivated teams and we will have to show our best to progress. Of course there will be a lot of things we have to do better than Union SG. We will have to play the match that we have prepared, with our ideas, our style and give it our all."

Where is the 2023 Europa League final?

POOL/AFP via Getty Images

Budapest's Puskás Aréna will host the final on 31 May 2023. The winners gain a place in the 2023/24 UEFA Champions League group stage, if they have not qualified via their domestic competition.