"Augsburg have shown their positive side in recent games," declared Gerardo Seoane at the pre-match press conference on Friday afternoon. They have only lost once in the last five league matches and picked up a point in both of the games against Eintracht Frankfurt and RB Leipzig. The Swiss boss made it clear: "They can compete with any team on a good day."
The management of the Bavarian Swabians found a missing piece for the FCA attack in the USA: Ricardo Pepi arrived from FC Dallas a few days ago. Seoane and his fellow coaches have already genned up on the talented 18-year-old. "Whenever a new player comes into the league, we take a look at them," said the coach. "He’s very talented."
Ahead of key defender Jonathan Tah and his teammates in the back row of the Black and Reds, the holding midfielders will definitely come into contact with Pepi. Robert Andrich, a goalscorer in the 2-1 win at Mönchengladbach, is an automatic first choice. In the same position, Julian Baumgartlinger (knee) and Exequiel Palacios (back) are ruled out through injury and Kerem Demirbay is missing due to a one-match ban. Also absent are Odilon Kossounou and Edmond Tapsoba, currently at the Africa Cup of Nations, plus Daley Sinkgraven and goalkeeper Andrey Lunev. Paulinho is now out of self-isolation after his coronavirus infection but it currently seems unlikely that the Brazilian will be in the squad due to remaining health checks following the illness.
Conversely, Charles Aránguiz is set to return to the match day squad. The Chile international has missed the last two Bundesliga games due to a calf injury. Seoane said in reference to the 32-year-old: "Charly isn't yet back to 100% and he hasn't trained with the team for four weeks. Nevertheless, he has so much experience that he can fit back in quickly."
The head coach named another alternative alongside Andrich in Nadiem Amiri who was "fully involved in training" this week. The Swiss coach could also consider a change of formation.
The first midweek match of the year for the Werkself is in March. Accordingly, Tah and Co. have been able to fully focus on training. All parts of the team have been involved in Leverkusen and they are well-prepared for the visitors from Augsburg.

With three games to play before the end of the season, the Bayer 04 Women can break one record and equal another at SGS Essen. After three wins on the bounce, coach Roberto Pätzold's team are aiming to maintain the chance of third place in Sunday’s away game (14:00 CEST, Stadion an der Hafenstraße).
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From Ouagadougou to Leverkusen – and back: in March, Bayer 04 travelled with Edmond Tapsoba for a special project in his homeland Burkina Faso. The country where his roots and heart lie. The country where he’s more than a world-class defender: a symbol of hope and a role model for an entire generation. The result is a 45-minute documentary about Tapsoba’s long journey from Africa via Portugal to Leverkusen, which offers extraordinary, one-off and emotional insights.
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Edmond Tapsoba has signed an early extension to his contract with Bayer 04 Leverkusen. With two years left on his current deal, the 27-year-old Burkina Faso international has extended his contract until 30 June 2031. The centre-back joined as a young talent from Portuguese top-flight club Vitoria Guimaraes at the start of 2020.
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A special surprise: during the preview for the 'Fierté Burkinabè' documentary about Edmond Tapsoba, Bayer 04 directors Fernando Carro and Simon Rolfes announced Tapsoba's contract extension until 2031 together with the centre-back. He then spoke to Werkself-TV about his time in Leverkusen so far and future ambitions...
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This evening was deeply moving: At a really special setting, Bayer 04 exclusively presented the specially produced documentary ‘Fierté Burkinabè’ ("Burkinabe Pride") about Edmond Tapsoba on Tuesday. For the preview at the BayArena, the parents of the Werkself player and other close companions travelled all the way from his African homeland Burkina Faso. The 45-minute film shows Tapsoba's extraordinary career from his beginnings in Ouagadougou to Leverkusen as well as the work of his foundation "Fondation Edmond Tapsoba", with representatives from Burkina Faso also present. Fans can watch the documentary free of charge on Werkself TV and YouTube from Wednesday night at 20:00 CEST.
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