Unpredictable Bayer Leverkusen host Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich on Saturday, still battling the inconsistency which threatens to derail their top-four hopes.
The 2023-24 double winners have been a mixed bag this term and are still coming to terms with a close-season rebuild and the firing of coach Erik Ten Hag just two games into the campaign.
Leverkusen became the first team to avoid defeat against Arsenal in the Champions League this season in Wednesday's 1-1 last 16, first-leg draw.
When placed alongside their 2-0 win over Manchester City and a strong 2-2 home draw with Newcastle, those performances showed what Kasper Hjulmand's young side are capable of.
But domestically Leverkusen's progress has been undermined by lackluster showings against smaller teams -- and it may cost them a spot in next season's Champions League.
After dismantling RB Leipzig away in December, Leverkusen sat third and looked on track for the top four.
But Leverkusen have won just two of their past six Bundesliga matches and sit sixth, three points off the Champions League places.
Failing to secure Champions League football would be a major setback for a club who spent big in the summer, hoping to elevate themselves to a spot alongside Bayern and Dortmund in German football.
Even if the Bundesliga gets five Champions League spots, Leverkusen's chances hang in the balance, with Hoffenheim in third spot and both Stuttgart and Leipzig -- who play each other on Sunday -- above them in the table.
Facing Bayern in between matches against Premier League leaders Arsenal makes their task even harder.
"That's what we're here for. That's why we'll try to recover perfectly after each game and be 100 percent back, both physically and mentally," captain Robert Andrich said on Wednesday.
"We're looking forward to Bayern -- and also to heading to London."
Bayern have an 11-point buffer atop the table but have been hit by injuries.
Jamal Musiala, Alphonso Davies and Jonas Urbig joined Manuel Neuer and Hiroki Ito on the sidelines after picking up injuries in Tuesday's 6-1 Champions League demolition of Atalanta.
After missing two games with a knock, Harry Kane is set to return for Bayern.
He needs 12 goals in his remaining nine league games to beat Robert Lewandowski's single-season goalscoring record.
One to watch: Michael Olise
Bayern Munich winger Michael Olise scored two goals and laid on an assist in Tuesday's 6-1 Champions League win at Atalanta to continue his excellent season.
In a team packed full of attacking threats, Olise is a willing provider for Harry Kane and Luis Diaz, as well as being a goal threat himself.
Olise's achievements this year may have been overshadowed by Bayern's barnstorming form and Kane's pursuit of Lewandowski's record, but the France winger is on track for a milestone of his own.
In addition to 10 goals, Olise has 16 assists so far this league campaign -- five away from equaling Thomas Mueller's all-time Bundesliga record.
"When I'm in certain areas of the pitch the coach (Vincent Kompany) wants me to beat my man, to play, to shoot, to do what I want to do -- so I'd say I have the freedom in that sense, to do what I want," Olise told CBS.
