8.12.2021Europa League

#FTCB04: Be ‘serious and successful’ in last group match

The end of the Europa League group phase: On the sixth and final matchday in Group G, Bayer 04 are away to Ferencváros on Thursday, 9 December (kick-off: 21.00 CET). The Werkself are already certain of finishing top of the group and thereby going straight through to the Round of 16. Nevertheless, there are several reasons why the leaders should take the clash with the team at the bottom of the group seriously as head coach Gerardo Seoane and experienced player Karim Bellarabi emphasised at the pre-match press conference on Wednesday evening.

One point is particularly important to Karim Bellarabi: "Some of our fans will be at the stadium tomorrow night. We want to give them a good and hopefully successful game," said the 31-year-old who joined Bayer 04 ten years ago and is a crowd favourite in the Werkself squad.

Head coach Gerardo Seoane added: "Our target was to go through. It wasn't a given that we would succeed in doing that before the last group match," said the Swiss coach. "Now we want to go into this sixth match in a serious manner and continue our great performances in this competition."

Lunev in goal – Trio do not travel

20 players boarded the aircraft on Wednesday morning. One of them was: Andrey Lunev. The Russian new signing will be between the sticks for the first time in a competitive match this season. "But it's not a gift to him, Andrey has earned this opportunity much more through his excellent performances in training," declared Seoane. The 30-year-old shot-stopper has fitted in with the team from day one and always supported the number one keeper Lukas Hradecky. Seoane added: "Andrey does everything to apply himself as best as possible. And his sporting qualities are obviously indisputable. He has a lot of experience and shows great reflexes on the line."

In addition to the injured (Baumgartlinger, Bakker), not yet available (Fosu-Mensah) and suspended (Demirbay) players, another trio remained in Leverkusen: Goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky, playmaker Florian Wirtz and centre forward Patrik Schick. "Lukas has played every game since the summer. Patrik is coming back from an injury and Florian has had slight problems recently. With him it's a case of controlling his workload," said Seoane.

Seoane on opposition: "showed strengths in previous meetin"

Ferencváros, currently top of the Hungarian OTP Bank Liga, have won four out of the last five league matches. "We saw their strengths in the previous meeting," said Seoane. In the opening match in the Europa League group stage, the Hungarians took the lead at the BayArena after eight minutes with the game ending in a narrow 2-1 win for the Werkself. The 43-year-old added: "They have fast players up front but also a certain robust approach and strength in challenges in defence. We will again have to do a lot to come out on top."

The coach is certain the Black and Reds will do that to achieve the desired "serious and successful conclusion."

Related News

Champions League - 18.02.2026

Matchday news #OLYB04: ‘Seize the chance for revenge’

Bayer 04 and Olympiacos had only met twice before the current UEFA Champions campaign. After the encounter on Matchday 7 of this season’s league phase, the Werkself travel to face the Greek side for the second time in just four weeks for the knockout play-off first leg. The Black and Reds were dominant for large spells in mid-January but lost 2-0 after missing a number of presentable chances. The Werkself aim to do better on Wednesday night to “seize the chance for revenge,” as managing director sport Simon Rolfes put it. Here’s all you need to know ahead of the game in our matchday news.

eSports - 18.02.2026

#B04eSports: Bayer 04 miss out on offline round and top eight

A bitter end to the fifth showdown of the 2025/26 VBL Club Championship as the #B04eSports team failed to take any points in the three remaining matches of the preliminary online round of the fifth and final showdown, missing out on the offline round. They can no longer take points in the overall table. Bayer 04 slipped out on the top eight, so direct participation in the final event for the German Club Championship is no longer possible, with Bayer 04 having to contest the play-offs.

Champions League - 17.02.2026

Hjulmand ahead of #OLYB04: ‘Give it our best for fans and club’

A rematch in Athens: On Wednesday, 18 February (kick-off: 21:00 CET), the Werkself face Greek double winners Olympiacos for the second time this season at the Karaiskakis Stadium. After the encounter in the league phase, it's now time for the first leg of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League play-offs. Ahead of the game, head coach Kasper Hjulmand spoke about how his side will approach the clash, while captain Robert Andrich explained how the team will try to dampen the atmosphere in the stadium tomorrow.

Women - 17.02.2026

Get your tickets now: Pre-sale for women's home game against Jena started

With the much-celebrated 2-1 derby win against 1. FC Köln, the Bayer 04 Women underlined their credentials as one of the top teams in the Bundesliga. Anyone wishing to support the Werkself in the stadium in the race for third place can now purchase tickets for the home match against FC Carl Zeiss Jena. Tickets are also still available for the upcoming clash against TSG Hoffenheim at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium on Sunday, 22 February. The latest information at a glance.

eSports - 17.02.2026

#B04eSports: Aiming to secure direct entry to the offline round against Bayern and Co.

Let's give it our all one more time! Today, Tuesday 17 February (live on the VBL Twitch channel from 18:00 CET), the #B04eSports team play the remaining three preliminary round matches of the fifth and final showdown of the VBL Club Championship 2025/26. The Leverkusen console pros go up against 1. FC Nürnberg, 1. FC Magdeburg and Bayern Munich, aiming to secure their place in the offline knockout round and pick up valuable points for the overall table and the battle to get into the final event for the German Club Championship. The lowdown on our next opponents.