Speaking at the press conference ahead of tomorrow's game, held on Friday afternoon following the presentation of Fernando Carro as the future Bayer 04 CEO, the Werkself coach again referred to the cup exit. "My team gave their all, pushed themselves to the limits and still resisted despite the big deficit. It wasn't enough on the day. Bayern Munich are currently in outstanding form so we don't need to reproach ourselves," said the 46-year-old coach. It's a question of drawing the right conclusions to be able to start next season in a position to compete with the serial champions. "But that's in the future. Now it's about achieving our short-term targets," said Herrlich looking at the desired qualification for the Champions League as he set out the agenda for the season run-in.
Three points against his former club would represent another major step forwards. The Bayer 04 head coach believes that is a realistic ambition: "We played very well at home to Borussia Dortmund until Wendell was sent off but we had to settle for a draw in the end," said Herrlich in recalling the 1-1 draw in December. He believes his players not only "have to produce a top performance" but also refuse to be misled by Dortmund's mixed results of late. "If you follow reports in the media then you might believe Borussia Dortmund are in danger of getting relegated. They are facing enormous criticism because levels of expectation have increased following the recent years of success," declared Herrlich.
Nevertheless, he warned against underestimating BVB. "They have a squad capable of winning the German league. And they've produced some top performances this season. The team definitely has more potential than they've shown recently," referring to the recent sensitive 2-0 defeat for Dortmund in the Revier derby away to Schalke. As a former Dortmund player, Herrlich knows what he's talking about: "After a game like that against Schalke, they are under incredible pressure and will now obviously try to perform to their best at home in front of their own fans. We have to be prepared for that and give absolutely everything."
In spite of this "tricky" situation for his team, Herrlich is looking for a similarly focused performance from the Werkself at Dortmund's Signal Iduna Park as shown against the rivals from Leipzig and Frankfurt: "Of course, Borussia Dortmund will be a little uncertain. So we'll have to play on the front foot from the start and prevent them from settling down – we just have to bring our strengths and quality into the game."
The Werkself coach will be able to welcome back striker Lucas Alario to league action on Saturday after his three-match ban. Herrlich is also confident keeper Bernd Leno should be fit after the knock he picked up in the DFB Cup game against Bayern Munich. In contrast, Lars Bender is ruled out with a one-match ban after picking up a fifth yellow card and Joel Pohjanpalo (rehab after ankle injury) and Wendell (torn ankle ligaments) are both sidelined.
Around 4,300 Werkself fans will be supporting the Black and Reds in Dortmund tomorrow night.
Once again, well over 100 Werkself fans were delighted to receive an invitation from the club’s record appearance-maker, Rüdiger Vollborn, to the sold-out Schwadbud at the BayArena. This time, the supporters listened as the club historian provided fascinating, exclusive insights into the period from Bayer 04 being founded in 1904 to the club’s promotion to the Bundesliga in 1979. A journey through time is also planned for the upcoming ‘Rudi lädt ein’ event in early November – this time focusing on the years of the Nazi regime.
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Happy children’s faces at the SSV Lützenkirchen training ground: For the 25th time, the Birkenberg soccer school – organised by SportBund Leverkusen – offered participating youngsters an exciting holiday activity. Meeting a Bayer 04 player has now become a cherished tradition. This time, Ibrahim Maza visited the 150 children and spoke to them about his World Cup experiences, amongst other things. “It’s always lovely to see the children’s enthusiasm for football,” said the 20-year-old, after bringing a sparkle to many eyes with selfies and autographs.
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One day after the successful DFB Pokal first round tie at SV Wehen Wiesbaden (4–0), the mood was understandably really good: Over 400 Bayer 04 supporters gathered on Sunday, 23 August, for the annual fan club meet-up at the BayArena and got in the mood for the new season through direct and informal discussions with Bayer 04 management, head coach Carles Martínez and Werkself players.
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Werkself-TV shows the highlights of the Bayer 04 women's 2-0 win at RB Leipzig on the 1st matchday of the Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga 2026/27.
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