Three players did miss the morning session on the Leverkusen training ground. In addition to captain Lars Bender (rehab training after a torn thigh muscle), Wendell was also unable to take part in full training after suffering a bruised foot at Hamburg. "Wendell was only been able to do a limited session in the morning as he's still feeling pain from his injury," said Herrlich. Nevertheless, the boss is optimistic the Brazilian left back should be fit for Sunday. And with Jonathan Tah, who missed a return to his old stomping ground at the weekend due to a bout of flu, Herrlich is hoping he will return in the next few days. "We won't hurry things and we'll take it day by day," added the 46-year-old.
There is good news about Lars Bender: The 28-year-old is making progress with his recovery. According to the medical section, he could even start training with the ball again this week – even though that would be in a one-to-one session with fitness coach Daniel Jouvin. The home game against the team in sixth place from Gelsenkirchen, with tickets still available for the match, comes too early for the versatile defender.
On the plus side, there is an all clear for Charles Aránguiz. The Chilean, who has been in outstanding form in recent weeks, was only on the training ground this morning. While his team-mates went on to complete an energetic session on the pitch, Charles worked on his own in the Werkstatt.
This week, Werkself fans can only see their stars train on Wednesday and Thursday (both sessions start at 10.30 CET). Final preparations for the match against direct rivals for a European spot will be held behind closed doors.
A bitter end to the fifth showdown of the 2025/26 VBL Club Championship as the #B04eSports team failed to take any points in the three remaining matches of the preliminary online round of the fifth and final showdown, missing out on the offline round. They can no longer take points in the overall table. Bayer 04 slipped out on the top eight, so direct participation in the final event for the German Club Championship is no longer possible, with Bayer 04 having to contest the play-offs.
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With the much-celebrated 2-1 derby win against 1. FC Köln, the Bayer 04 Women underlined their credentials as one of the top teams in the Bundesliga. Anyone wishing to support the Werkself in the stadium in the race for third place can now purchase tickets for the home match against FC Carl Zeiss Jena. Tickets are also still available for the upcoming clash against TSG Hoffenheim at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium on Sunday, 22 February. The latest information at a glance.
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Let's give it our all one more time! Today, Tuesday 17 February (live on the VBL Twitch channel from 18:00 CET), the #B04eSports team play the remaining three preliminary round matches of the fifth and final showdown of the VBL Club Championship 2025/26. The Leverkusen console pros go up against 1. FC Nürnberg, 1. FC Magdeburg and Bayern Munich, aiming to secure their place in the offline knockout round and pick up valuable points for the overall table and the battle to get into the final event for the German Club Championship. The lowdown on our next opponents.
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So here we go again: Four weeks after the 2-0 home win in the league phase of the UEFA Champions League, Olympiacos host the Werkself at the Stadio Georgios Karaiskakis this Wednesday, 18 February (kick-off: 21:00 CET - live on Werkself Radio) for the second encounter in a short space of time. It's the first leg of the knockout play-offs, and it's likely to be another high-intensity clash in a fiery atmosphere.
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The Werkself impressed in the 4-0 home win over FC St. Pauli with a performance that pleased head coach Kasper Hjulmand that had previously being missing and which he now wants to "use as a boost". Defenders Jarell Quansah and Edmond Tapsoba in particular once again stood firm at the back and scored at the other end - the latter now has the most goal involvements by a centre-back in the top five leagues. However, the Bayer 04 players are already looking forward to the forthcoming fixtures with a hunger for success and optimism. The Werkself review of the game on Carnival Saturday.
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