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"The position in the table is irrelevant to us. Anything is possible in football," said Alonso at the start of the pre-match press conference on Friday afternoon. The Spaniard sees Darmstadt as a team who "play with passion, fighting spirit and good motivation." Alonso will prepare his team for an intense encounter: "We have to control this emotional part of the game well. I've played at that stadium. There's always a good atmosphere there. Darmstadt are currently fighting very hard to avoid relegation. I have great respect for the coach and the spirit of the team."
The Werkself, who will complete the final pre-match training session on Friday afternoon, will then set off for Darmstadt. For the match against the Lilies, Alonso will again be able to call on Edmond Tapsoba and Amine Adli who have returned from the Africa Cup of Nations. Both went out of AFCON this week at the Round of 16 stage and they were back in Leverkusen on Thursday. The Spaniard refused to say whether the two Werkself players would feature against Darmstadt: "They've come back in good shape and are fit. They know situations like this. They will train with us again for the first time. For us it's really great to have more options again."
Alonso also kept his cards close to his chest with regard to other players who might find a place in the starting line-up. The head coach said of the winter signing Borja Iglesias: "He is fit and a good player with brilliant motivation. That's very important to us." On Granit Xhaka , who is currently on four yellow cards, Alonso said: “We'll see if he plays. We definitely have enough players to make that decision. Everybody's well prepared."
Alonso will have to manage without Odilon Kossounou, who is still at AFCON, plus the injured players Victor Boniface, Arthur and Exequiel Palacios. In response to a question about the fitness of the Argentinian World Cup winner, Alonso said: "He's doing better. We are hoping for a quick recovery but we want to take it at the right pace and not be too hasty. We will watch his progress day by day. We remain positive."
1,700 Bayer 04 fans will support the Werkself in Darmstadt. The allocation has been sold out. There will be no away ticket office at the game.
Following the Bundesliga clash against RB Leipzig (Sunday, 20 September, 15:30 CEST), some of the Werkself first team players will be heading off for the first international break of the season. Here is an overview of the Bayer 04 players called up for their national teams and all the details of their upcoming matches.
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A special visit to the BayArena: 222 members from volunteer fire brigades in Leverkusen, the Rheinisch-Bergisch district and the Oberbergisch district watched the Werkself’s 2–0 home win over Slovenian champions NK Celje live in the stadium. Bayer 04 had invited them to the 2026/27 Europa League opener as a thank-you for their tremendous dedication. They watched the match together in Block F4.
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The Bayer 04 U19s have extended their winning run with a fifth consecutive victory on Matchday 5 of the DFB Youth League’s preliminary round. Coach Patrick Greveraars’ side secured a 3–2 (2–1) win in their match against second-placed FC Viktoria Köln, with Burak Kir and Nebe Domnic scoring for the hosts in the first half before captain Ben Hawighorst found the net after the break.
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Bayer 04 will have to manage without defender Guéla Doué for the time being. The Ivory Coast international sustained a muscle injury to his right calf during the final Werkself training session yesterday ahead of the Europa League clash with Slovenian champions NK Celje.
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For the first time since reaching the final against AS Roma (2–2, first leg 2–0) in May 2024, Bayer 04 are playing another home match in the UEFA Europa League – and they will be wearing their new European kit. On Wednesday 16 September (kick-off: 21:00 CEST), the BayArena will welcome Slovenian champions NK Celje, who appointed a new coach this week following a mixed start to the season. Under the slogan “40 Years Across Europe. Still Creating History.”, the Black and Reds now aim to add the next chapter to their European history, which has seen so much success in recent years. Bayer 04 fans can follow the match on free-to-air TV on RTL, as well as on Sky and Werkself Radio. The matchday news.
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