
Karim Bellarabi, who was unable to play to the end of the water fight against FC Nürnberg on Monday night due to muscular problems, is also on the road to recovery. On Wednesday, he trained on his own in the gym but the 28-year-old should be back on the pitch for the closed training session on Thursday. "I expect he will be fit for Saturday," said Heiko Herrlich on Wednesday.
The Werkself coach was less optimistic about Sven Bender who was substituted at half-time due to foot pains. "At the moment, we are leaning towards resting him – we definitely don't want to make a mistake that rules him out over the long term," added Herrlich. If the Werkself number five is sidelined then Aleksandar Dragovic, who played against Ludogorets and FC Nürnberg, is an alternative and Tin Jedvaj can also play in central defence.

Ecuador international Piero Hincapie, who moved to Arsenal FC on loan from Bayer 04 Leverkusen for the 2025/26 season, will join the English champions permanently on 1 July 2026.
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The date and kick-off time for Bayer 04’s match in the first round of the 2026/27 DFB Pokal have been confirmed. The Werkself face SV Wehen Wiesbaden on Saturday afternoon, 22 August, at 13:00 CEST. The German Football Association (DFB) announced this today, Wednesday. The Pokal tie against the Hessen state cup winners will be played at the BRITA Arena. Ticket information to follow at a later date.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen CEO Fernando Carro will lead a club delegation to Brazil from July 2-6 for a program of partner engagement, community activities and football development initiatives across São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.
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In glorious sunshine and temperatures of around 30 degrees Celsius, the Bayer 04 Women have begun their preparations for the new season. With a relaxed first session at the Kurtekotten training centre, coach Roberto Pätzold’s team became the first Bundesliga side to resume training after a 37-day break.
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