Herrlich has no objections to building on recent success as he admitted at the pre-match press conference ahead of the league match in Frankfurt: "We want to carry on where we left off against RB Leipzig last week: We're obviously going there to win the game. That would represent a huge step forwards for us." The Werkself are two points behind the team in seventh and a win would take the Black and Reds above Eintracht and keep them in touch with the top spots. The encounter promises much excitement. "The way I see Frankfurt they can easily compete for a European finish. They have an outstanding coach in Niko Kovac. Since he took over as coach the team has moved out of the relegation zone and continue to develop – last season they were even in the DFB Cup final," said Herrlich.
"The statistics are well known and they have the third best defence in the league. So it will bee very difficult for us to score there," predicted Herrlich. The Werkself head coach particularly praised the tactical finesse of the team from Hessen: "We're playing against a very good side that's very flexible both in attack and defence and are therefore difficult to predict. Sometimes they push up, sometimes they sit back and play out from defence or they choose to play a long, targeted ball to Sebastien Hallér." Herrlich made it clear his team needed to deal with Eintracht's top scorer (five goals) and new signing Kevin Prince Boateng. Last season, he used Frankfurt games to further his work. So it's no surprise that Herrlich is expecting a "very difficult task": "We again need to build on our work against the ball like we did so well against Leipzig."
In terms of the line-up, Bayer 04 primarily have to be prepared to make changes in defence: In addition to Wendell (fifth yellow card) and Benjamin Henrichs (one-match suspension), Sven Bender is not yet available following his double rib fracture. Although he was able to train during the week the defender was still suffering pain. "He's only up to 70 per cent so we won't take any risks. All the players who can give 100 per cent can help us more. We have 20 fit outfield players and a lot of quality in reserve," explained Herrlich. He will also have to manage without Vladlen Yurchenko (bruised foot). In contrast, he again has Panos Retsos available. Following his cold at the start of the week he returned to training on Wednesday and is in the squad for tomorrow's game.
Around 1,300 Werkself supporters are expected to follow the team to Frankfurt.
Werkself-TV shows the highlights of the Bayer 04 women's 1-2 loss against VfL Wolfsburg on the 2nd matchday of the Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga 2026/27.
In the 3-2 defeat at Bundesliga newcomers SV 07 Elversberg, the Werkself found the back of the net in the closing stages and, with a bit of luck, could still have equalised. “Today, our play wasn’t good enough, particularly when it came to the basics,” said head coach Carles Martínez. Like the boss, Ibrahim Maza also wants to learn from the match and look ahead: “Next week, people should be able to see from the very first minute that we want it more than our opponents.” The Werkself review on the Bundesliga opener in 2026/27.
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No points to start the league campaign: Bayer 04 lost 3-2 away to newly promoted SV 07 Elversberg in the first Bundesliga match of the 2026/27 campaign. Two quick-fire goals from Lukas Petkov (8’) and Cole Campbell (10’) gave the hosts an early lead, before David Mokwa scored the Saarland side’s third shortly after half-time (46’). In the closing stages, the Werkself rallied and staged a late comeback with goals from Patrik Schick (77’) and Christian Kofane (90+1’), but the Black and Reds were denied an equaliser.
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The Black and Reds kick off the new Bundesliga campaign today, Saturday 29 August (kick-off 15:30 CEST), away to newly promoted SV 07 Elversberg – and the Werkself will come up against a familiar face who is currently causing a stir at ‘Elv’. For an affordable and easy journey to the Saarland, the 1,600 travelling fans can still use the WERKSELFgo car-share platform. Today’s matchday news..
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The European jersey has been launched, the UEL opponents have been drawn – and anticipation for the European campaign is running high. To mark the occasion, an autograph session was held on Friday afternoon, 28 August, at the Fanwelt with current Werkself player Montrell Culbreath and official club legend Paulo Sergio.
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