The match will be played behind closed doors due to the coronavirus pandemic. Werkself fans do have the chance to watch the game live. The only external friendly before the start of the season will be broadcast on Bayer 04 TV at bayer04.de and on the club’s YouTube channel.
The Werkself returned to full training on Monday morning. While the international players are on the road with their national teams, the Leverkusen players left at home face a first challenge in the clash with the Belgian side. Anderlecht are already up to speed in terms of match practice as the league started at the beginning of August. The results for the team currently eighth in the table: one win, three draws.
The 2019/20 season was abandoned after matchday 29 due to the coronavirus pandemic. RSC Anderlecht, with Vincent Kompany as player-manager, are currently eighth in the table five points behind Standard Liege who are in the qualifiers for the Europa League this term.
The most famous representative of the club from Brussels is the manager. Vincent Kompany took the helm at his former club in the summer. After coming through the youth ranks at RSC, he stepped up to the senior squad at the Violet and Whites in 2003. The central defender decided to move on to Hamburg SV three years later and then he played for Manchester City for eleven years becoming a massive club legend. Kompany was player-manager at RSC last season. The 34-year-old became head coach in the summer.
Anderlecht are one of the top clubs in Belgium in terms of youth development. Romelu Lukaku, Dries Mertens and many more came through the youth teams at the 34-time Belgian champions. With players like Albert Sambi Lokonga (20) and Jérémy Doku (18), the next generation of top talents are ready and waiting.
Panagiotis, known as Panos, Retsos wore the Bayer 04 jersey for three years. Including his loan spells, he was under contract with the Werkself for a total of four and a half years. "It's a very special club for me," said the 27-year-old, who returned to his boyhood club Olympiacos in 2022, in an interview with bayer04.de. The former Leverkusen man is now captain and a first choice for the Werkself's next opponents in the UEFA Champions League. Ahead of the clash on Tuesday night, 20 January (kick-off: 21:00 CET), Retsos talks about his fond memories of his time in Leverkusen and the imminent reunion with some of his former team-mates. He also talks about who brought him to Leverkusen and why he likes getting older.
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Four Bayer 04 players are in action at the 35th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations being played in Morocco from 21 December to 18 January 2026: Eliesse Ben Seghir for the hosts, Edmond Tapsoba with Burkina Faso, Ibrahim Maza for Algeria and Christian Kofane with Cameroon. Updates on the AFCON matches involving Werkself players...
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen will have to manage without goalkeeper Mark Flekken and forward Nathan Tella for the time being.
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After a week in the Algarve, the Bayer 04 Women returned home on Saturday afternoon. The Werkself had six training sessions, two friendlies and a lot of time together as a team. Roberto Pätzold's team will be back in action in the Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga next Friday for the start of matchday 15.
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"We didn’t make the right decision at the right moments," said captain Robert Andrich after the 1-0 defeat away to TSG Hoffenheim, where Bayer 04 endeavoured to control the game but failed to score. The Werkself also had two enforced substitutions due to injuries. Nevertheless, the coach, captain and debutant Janis Blaswich are positive about the coming weeks. The Werkself review.
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