The game will be refereed by William Cullom supported by his fellow Scottish match officials. Read on for stats and facts ahead of #B04atleti:
Schade: "Now we want more"
There is no doubt that the Spaniards are the favourites tonight at the BayArena having qualified for the final of Europe's premier club competition twice in the past three years. It is equally clear that Bayer 04 go into the clash with the Rojiblancos in enthusiastic and confident mood as Michael Schade emphasised. "Our young team has already achieved great things by qualifying for the Round of 16 but now we want more. Our target is the quarter-finals – regardless of the strength of Atlético," declared the CEO.
Werkself cross Simeone’s path
Diego Simeone is often a partisan livewire on the touchline at Atlético matches but he was full of respect for the hosts at the pre-match press conference. "It won't be easy for us. Bayer 04 have a good team who have gained confidence recently. Havertz and Brandt are very quick and you always have to look out for Chicharito as he's tough to handle," said the Madrid coach. The Argentinian manager led his team out against the Werkself in the Round of 16 two years ago and also encountered them as a player: In the group stage of the 1999/2000 Champions League campaign he played for Lazio against Leverkusen. Both games ended all square at 1-1 with Simeone coming off the bench in both matches.
Da Costa’s baptism of fire in the snow
Tonight's meeting of Bayer 04 and Atlético is the fifth competitive match on the European stage between the two clubs. The first two games came in the group stage of the UEFA Europa League in 2010/11 with both ending in 1-1 draws (Eren Derdiyok scored for Bayer 04 at the Estadio Vicente Calderón and Patrick Helmes netted at the BayArena). Two years ago, the Werkself won 1-0 at the BayArena thanks to a goal from Hakan Calhanoglu. The return game saw Atlético win 1-0 through a Mario Suarez strike and the Spanish side won the tie 3-2 on penalties. Three of the current Bayer 04 squad played against Atlético in 2010: Stefan Kießling, Lars Bender and Danny da Costa with the then 17-year-old celebrating his baptism of fire in European football in heavy snow at the BayArena in December
Bayer 04 looking for another first
Roger Schmidt's team are unbeaten in the last ten home games in UEFA competitions, picking up five wins and five draws along the way. The last defeat was a 1-0 reverse against AS Monaco in November 2014. And, with the Werkself coming through the group stage unbeaten for the first time in eleven Champions League campaigns, they are looking to achieve another first of winning a Round of 16 tie. When Bayer 04 reached the final in 2002 there was a second group stage leading straight to the quarter-finals.
Brandt’s record, Chicha’s winner
Julian Brandt scored his first goal in his 19th game in the Champions League in the 3-0 win against AS Monaco in the last game of the group stage – making him the youngest goalscorer for the Werkself in Europe's premier club competition. Brandt scored at the age of 20 years and 219 days. Chicharito also has very positive experiences in the Champions League against Atlético. He played for Real Madrid when they knocked the Colchoneros out at the quarter-final stage in 2014/15: After a 0-0 draw in the first leg at the Estadio Vicente Calderón he decided the fate of Atlético in the return match at the Bernabeu scoring the only goal of the game on 88 minutes.
Atlético’s good record
The Rojiblancos are in the Champions League quarter-finals for the ninth time. Last season, the Spaniards beat PSV Eindhoven 8-7 on penalties after two goalless matches in the Round of 16. That was the first time in the history of the UEFA Champions League that a tie in the knockout stages has ended 0-0 in both legs. Atlético have won out every time in the last seven two-legged encounters with German teams. In 20 away games in the Champions League since September 2013 Atlético have clocked up nine wins and five draws. The 18 matches to date in Germany have brought five wins, three draws and ten defeats for the Colchoneros. Koke, Filipe Luis and the currently injured players Diego Godin and Tiago were part of the team that last won in Germany in 2011/12 with a 2-1 victory over Hannover 96 in the quarter-finals of the Europa League.
#nextLEVel
Ahead of the home game against Atlético, Bayer 04 have made it possible for all fans to tweet their support using the hashtag #nextLEVel via StadiumVision to the BayArena.
The Bayer 04 Leverkusen Women’s team and s2-Software are continuing their long-term partnership: The Werkself and the provider of pre-owned Microsoft licences have extended their contract by two years to 2028. This means s2-Software will remain the Bayer 04 sleeve sponsor for all matches in the Google Pixel Women’s Bundesliga.
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BIOGENA is the new performance partner for the Bayer 04 Leverkusen Women’s team. Under a partnership initially set to run for three years, the club and the leading Austrian micronutrient company are pooling their expertise in the areas of health, fitness and top-level performance.
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100 children from the Bayer 04 Football Academy had the chance to gain exclusive insights: As part of the summer camp, the young footballers headed inside the BayArena at midday on Tuesday, 21 July, where they were due to meet Werkself keepers Janis Blaswich and Simeon Rapsch in the press conference room. The two players took plenty of time to answer every question from the inquisitive audience – whether it was about their own careers or their first impressions of the new head coach. Finally, there was even time left to sign autographs for the young fans.
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Alejo Sarco has left Bayer 04 Leverkusen to join Sporting Gijón in Spain’s second division. Bayer 04 have secured a buy-back clause for the 20-year-old Argentine striker, who spent the second half of last season on loan at Borussia Mönchengladbach.
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