Bayer Leverkusen boss Kasper Hjulmand is under pressure to keep his job ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League tie against Arsenal, according to a report.
Florian Plettenberg reports for Sky Sport Germany that Kasper Hjulmand’s job could be under threat, despite the Bayer Leverkusen head coach having a contract until 2027.
Leverkusen are reportedly planning a review of Hjulmand’s position, which will take place this summer at the latest. The result of that review is “open in all directions”, with no ruling out a change in manager.
The suggestion is that there are doubts emerging over Hjulmand ahead of Leverkusen’s Champions League tie against Arsenal, with recent results seemingly failing to impress the club hierarchy.
The report comes off the back of Leverkusen’s disappointing dropped points away to SC Freiburg on Saturday, with Matthias Ginter netting an 86th-minute equaliser to deny the visitors the win in a 3-3 draw.
Leverkusen have been very inconsistent in this Bundesliga campaign so far, failing to put together three league wins in a row since the start of November.
Similar is true in Europe, with Leverkusen only winning four of their 10 Champions League fixtures this season so far.
There have been some standout highlights, like the 2-0 win over Manchester City, but there have also been defeats to PSG (7-2) and Olympiacos (2-0), as well as underwhelming draws against FC Copenhagen, PSV Eindhoven, and Newcastle United.
Yet there are still some positives for Arsenal’s upcoming opponents, particularly defensively.
Leverkusen have five clean sheets in their seven Champions League games since they were thrashed by PSG, so they’ve at least found their feet at the back. In the Bundesliga, only Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund have better defensive records.
The fact that Leverkusen are unbeaten in their two games against English opponents this season will also inspire some self-belief.
So whilst Arsenal should go into their last-16 tie with a reasonable amount of confidence, they can’t expect to breeze past their opponents without a fight.