Werder Bremen have only won one of their last eleven games against the Werkself (six draws, four defeats): in a 3-1 victory on Bundesliga matchday 26 in the 2018/19 season. The last time Werder won the fixture at home was in October 2016 (2-1) and since then they have not beaten Bayer 04 in four games on their own turf (two draws, two defeats).
Werkself midfielders Robert Andrich and Exequiel Palacios are back in the squad under head coach Xabi Alonso after missing the Europa League Round of 16 first leg against Ferencváros due to suspension. Holding midfielder Charles Aránguiz is again sidelined through injury.
Werkself player Andrich this week took over the annual patronage of the OSTERMANN Birkenberg soccer school supported by Sportbund Leverkusen e.V.
There was great frustration in the Werder camp last weekend after the 2-1 defeat away to FC Augsburg. The defeat being completely avoidable was the prevailing view for the Green and Whites. "We clearly beat ourselves," said captain Marco Friedl. Coach Ole Werner raised statistics as proof of this statement and they all favoured Werder Bremen: 22 to 9 shots on goal, 81% pass completion, 62% possession – but what use is that if the result is not right in the end. Two things particularly stand out in the error analysis: "Too many chances were squandered" (Mitchell Weiser) and "we weren’t alert enough in crucial situations" (Niklas Schmidt). More on personnel, performance and problems for Werder Bremen in the lowdown on our next opponents.
The German Football Association (DFB) has appointed Deniz Aytekin as the match referee for the game in Bremen. This will be the 35th game involving the Werkself with the 44 year-old in charge. Aytekin will be assisted by Christian Dietz and Eduard Beitinger with Pascal Müller in action as the VAR official.
As usual, Werkself Radio is available for anybody unable to be at today's game. The audio broadcast begins 30 minutes before kick-off with commentary provided by Cedric Pick and Niko Hartmann. In addition, the live text update service will keep you up-to-date to ensure you don't miss anything in the game. Both Werkself Radio and the live text updates can be found at bayer04.de and on the Bayer 04 app – tune in.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen have extended the contract with full-back Arthur ahead of schedule. The Werkself have agreed a new deal with the Brazilian to 30 June 2031. The 23-year-old was previously under contract to the summer of 2028.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen continue building the squad for the new season in the Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga. The 25-year-old midfielder Marlene Müller has joined the club from RB Leipzig on a contract to 30 June 2028.
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Bayer 04 are introducing changes to the ticket price structure for the 2026/27 season. In addition to adjusting the ticket prices, the ticket categories will also be reorganised. All season ticket holders have already been informed of the changes by e-mail. The most important information at a glance.
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Ibrahim Maza joined Bayer 04 from Hertha Berlin in the summer of 2025. The youngster from Berlin developed into a difference-maker in his first season with the Werkself. Find out what makes the highly talented player tick in this very personal interview. Among other things, Maza talks about his Algerian-Vietnamese-German home, the role of his family and the importance of Islam for him both in his private life and in football...
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Talking to each other instead of about each other - that was the motto of the ‘Stadiontalk’ on Monday in the BayArena. Representatives from Bayer 04 and other companies, politicians and trainees from the region came together to discuss the career prospects for young people as well as existing challenges and hurdles.
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