Carles Martinez described Bayer Leverkusen's 4-0 victory over Lech Poznan as an "important win" ahead of facing Bundesliga leaders Freiburg this Sunday. 

Leverkusen made it two wins from two to begin their Europa League campaign, with Patrik Schick's fine form in 2026-27 continuing with two first-half penalties. 

Malik Tillman had opened the scoring in the 32nd minute before Schick notched his brace, and Ibrahim Maza sealed the win late on for Martinez's side at Enea Stadion. 

But now Leverkusen's attention turns to the Bundesliga, with surprise league leaders Freiburg the visitors to the BayArena in what is set to be an entertaining encounter. 

Leverkusen are fourth in the table after last week's thrilling 4-3 win away to Mainz, with just three points separating the top four in the table heading into MD6. 

Martinez is hoping his team's victory in the Europa League will serve as a timely confidence booster against Freiburg, highlighting the importance of rebuilding their energy. 

"That was an important win, for our confidence and for the team spirit. We want to carry on exactly like this and keep pushing ourselves further," Martinez told reporters.

"The important thing now is to build up our energy, both mentally and physically, for Sunday." 

When asked about Afonso Moreira, who missed a big chance in Poland shortly before the final whistle and was immediately consoled by his team-mates, Martinez continued: "A very good example of our team spirit. Our club culture, where we act as a group and a family, is brilliant.

"You always have to pull together if you want to be successful. Of course, there's always room for improvement. But you have to approach that with self-confidence.

"Knowing that these are just minor details, and that, overall, a great deal is going well and on the right track. That mindset is important to me."

https://t.co/QySfNhCGrv

— Bayer 04 Leverkusen (@bayer04_en) October 16, 2026

Martinez did, however, acknowledge the difficulties of facing Freiburg, who sit level with Borussia Dortmund on 13 points at the summit.

The key to their strong start has been consistency, with Freiburg naming the same starting line-up in each of their last four Bundesliga matches and making only one change to their XI all season, which is fewer than any other team.

However, they are forced into a change against Leverkusen following the suspension of Yuito Suzuki, who is their top scorer in the Bundesliga this season with four goals.

"I have great respect for them. They deserve to be top of the table," Martinez said of Leverkusen's opponents. "They compete with aggression and have a clear style of play.

"But we're also in good form and are playing at home at our own stadium. We're in a good place with our fans behind us.

"It's not just the results that matter to me, but also the team's performance. That's always fundamental to success.

"We want to field eleven players in every match who produce maximum intensity on the pitch."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Bayer Leverkusen – Patrik Schick

Schick has scored in each of the first five matchdays of a Bundesliga season for the first time (five goals) – he is the third player to achieve this for the club, following Stefan Kiessling in 2009-10 and Dimitar Berbatov in 2005-06 (both also five goals).

Only Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in 2015-16 (Borussia Dortmund) and Robert Lewandowski in 2019-20 (Bayern Munich) have scored in each of the first six matchdays of a Bundesliga campaign. 

5 – Patrik Schick traf als dritter Leverkusener nach Dimitar Berbatov 2005/06 und Stefan Kießling 2009/10 an jedem der ersten fünf Spieltage einer Bundesliga-Saison. Maschine. https://t.co/EPbPQXoTyQ

— OptaFranz (@OptaFranz) October 10, 2026

Freiburg – Igor Mantanovic

Freiburg have scored 14 Bundesliga goals this season. They had never previously scored more than 12 goals in the first five games of a top-flight campaign. 

And they will be without top scorer Suzuki for their trip to Leverkusen, though they have a capable back-up in Matanovic, who has three goals in the league this term. 

MATCH PREDICTION: BAYER LEVERKUSEN WIN

Leverkusen have collected 10 of a possible 12 points from their last four Bundesliga matches and have won consecutive games. However, they have not won three consecutive top-flight matches in about a year, last doing so between September and October 2025, when they won four in a row. 

The Werkself have also won all three of their home matches in all competitions under Martinez without conceding a single goal. In professional football, only Rudi Voller in autumn 2000 won his first three competitive matches with Leverkusen while keeping a clean sheet in each.

Leverkusen have lost only one of their last eight Bundesliga matches against a league leader (0-3 away to Bayern in November 2025, plus W2 D5) and are unbeaten in their last four home games against the side sitting top of the table (W2 D2) – their longest such run since five home games between 1993 and 1997.

Freiburg are top of the Bundesliga table for the fifth time, having also been there after matchday three this season. However, they have never successfully defended their position at the top, failing to win any of their four previous matches as league leaders (D3 L1).

They are also winless in their last seven Bundesliga matches against Leverkusen (D3 L4) – they have never had a longer winless run against them. Freiburg have also failed to keep a clean sheet in any of their last 15 league meetings with Leverkusen, with their last shutout coming in October 2018 (0-0).

But with 13 points from five matches, Freiburg have made their best start to a Bundesliga season in club history. Across two seasons, they are unbeaten in their last six league matches (W5 D1), with their only longer run under Julian Schuster being seven games in February and March 2025.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Bayer Leverkusen – 53.7%

Draw – 22.2%

Freiburg – 24.1%