Bayer 04 fans are putting on a special show for tonight’s Champions League match between the Werkself and Porto: To commemorate the 40th anniversary of the fan friendship between Bayer 04 and Kickers Offenbach, a large piece of choreography is planned in the North Stand just before kick-off and it is definitely not to be missed. So get to your seats in good time and feel the excitement.
UEFA have appointed István Kovács as the referee for the game against Porto. The Champions League encounter is the second match involving the Werkself with the 38-year-old match official in charge. The Black and Reds secured a 3-1 away win in the Europa League in 2019/20 on the previous occasion. The Romanian referee will tonight be assisted by his fellow countrymen Mihai Ovidiu Artene and Mihai Marica and Italian referee Paolo Valeri is the VAR official. Have a good game.
FC Porto tonight have the chance to win both games against the German team in the group stage of the Champions League for the fourth time. That previously happened against Werder Bremen (1993/94), Hertha Berlin (1999/00) and Hamburg SV (2006/07). However, the Dragons have not won any of their last seven outings against German teams on the European stage (two draws, five defeats). The last victory was a 3-1 win at Hamburg in the Champions League in 2006/07. On the other hand, the Werkself are in a position to win two home games in succession in the Champions League for the first time in eight years. The last time the Black and Reds achieved that was in October 2014 in the matches against Benfica (3-1) and Zenit St Petersburg (2-0).
Moreover: Three of the last four champions League goals for Porto was scored by substitutes including both of last week's goals against Leverkusen. They were both from assists by Mehdi Taremi. It's the first time the 30 year-old has been involved in more than one goal in a Champions League match. The team under head coach Xabi Alonso know what to expect.
Following the 2-0 away defeat against Porto on Tuesday 4 October, the Portuguese repeated the performance in their league: There was a 2-0 away win against SC Portimonense putting the Dragons in second place on 22 points in touch with league leaders Benfica (25 points). The Werkself were also able to pick up points: The last Bundesliga matchday brought a deserved 4-0 home win against Schalke 04.
The Portuguese have suffered a bitter blow ahead of the return match against the Werkself: Stalwart Pepe is sidelined after a knee injury sustained in training last week. At the same time, Wendell is looking forward to his return to Leverkusen. The Brazilian played under the Bayer Cross for seven years making 250 appearances for the Black and Reds. Further news on our opponents from the north-west of Portugal can be found here.
Bayer 04 fans can find out the latest key information ahead of Champions League home games in Werkself LIVE – as is the case for today's clash with Porto. The flyer, with stats and facts on the match against the team under head coach Sérgio Conceição is available at the BayArena. It is also available online HERE.
Anybody unable to be at the BayArena can again rely on Werkself Radio. The audio broadcast of the match begins 30 minutes before kick-off. In addition, you can stay informed via live text updates so you do not need to miss anything that happens in the match against the North Portuguese side. Both Werkself Radio and the live text updates can be found at bayer04.de as well as on the Bayer 04 app.
The sports tribunal of the German Football Association (DFB) has fined Bayer 04 Leverkusen €250. The decision was preceded by a case brought by the DFB control committee for unsporting conduct by a Bayer 04 supporter: 37 minutes into the Bundesliga game at home to SC Freiburg at the beginning of September, a Leverkusen spectator threw a firework towards the penalty area. As the Werkself were able to identify the perpetrator, the fine was reduced from €1,000 by 75% to €250 as according to sentencing guidelines.
This special event showed once again how strong Bayer 04 are as a team: As part of ‘BarmeniaGothaer gives joy’, the Werkself players Edmond Tapsoba, Ibrahim Maza and Christian Kofane supported the sale of individually designed T-shirts for a good cause at the Fanwelt on Thursday. Several hundred fans came to take part in the charity campaign. Leverkusen's main sponsor BarmeniaGothaer donated the proceeds to the Fondation Edmond Tapsoba, which helps people in Tapsoba's home country of Burkina Faso in their challenging everyday lives.
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With three games to play before the end of the season, the Bayer 04 Women can break one record and equal another at SGS Essen. After three wins on the bounce, coach Roberto Pätzold's team are aiming to maintain the chance of third place in Sunday’s away game (14:00 CEST, Stadion an der Hafenstraße).
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Rüdiger Vollborn has been at the club for 40 years, he holds the record number of Bundesliga appearances for the club (401) and is the only Bayer 04 player to have won both the UEFA Cup (1988) and the DFB Pokal (1993). And the Berliner stayed with the Werkself after ending his impressive playing career as he worked as a goalkeeping coach for the following nine years. Vollborn now works under the Bayer Cross as a fan liaison officer and club archivist. Since February 2021, the personalised Black and Red lexicon takes Werkself fans under the heading of 'Rudi recounts...' on a brief trip through the history of Bayer 04 every month…
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From Ouagadougou to Leverkusen – and back: in March, Bayer 04 travelled with Edmond Tapsoba for a special project in his homeland Burkina Faso. The country where his roots and heart lie. The country where he’s more than a world-class defender: a symbol of hope and a role model for an entire generation. The result is a 45-minute documentary about Tapsoba’s long journey from Africa via Portugal to Leverkusen, which offers extraordinary, one-off and emotional insights.
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Edmond Tapsoba has signed an early extension to his contract with Bayer 04 Leverkusen. With two years left on his current deal, the 27-year-old Burkina Faso international has extended his contract until 30 June 2031. The centre-back joined as a young talent from Portuguese top-flight club Vitoria Guimaraes at the start of 2020.
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