In addition to long-term injury Kevin Volland (ankle), Nadiem Amiri is also sidelined after suffering a shoulder injury in Wednesday’s 3-1 win against Union Berlin in the DFB Cup quarter-finals. Lars Bender is also unavailable as Bosz explained, “he's on his way back and has trained again,” but the clash with Frankfurt “is out of the question.” Mitchell Weiser will start at right-back in place of the skipper.
The Black and Reds have an impressive record at the BayArena in 2020: six wins in six games. And now Eintracht come to Leverkusen. Bosz on the winning home form: “During the winter break, we looked at areas where we can improve. We identified stability and home games – both have worked. That was important.“
Nevertheless, according to Bosz, the Werkself face an opponent tomorrow who “can motivate themselves for individual games and produce great performances; we’ve seen that, above all, in the cup competitions. They are very straight-up and direct.”
In recent games, substitutes have often proved to be match winners. “We often come out on top late on,” said the Dutch coach before adding: “I always say to my players, we win games with 20 rather than eleven players.”
Bosz finished off by looking forward to a sell-out crowd at the BayArena. The 56-year-old: “Footballers are nothing without the fans. It absolutely helps when the stadium is sold-out and the fans are right behind the team. It can give you that extra something that makes the difference.”
Match information:
Attendance: Bayer 04 announce a sold-out BayArena
Broadcaster: Sky (TV) and Werkself Radio (bayer04.de)
Referee: Dr. Felix Brych (Munich)
Sandwiched between their UEFA Champions League knockout play-off tie against Olympiacos, Bayer 04 return to Bundesliga action on Saturday with a trip to Union Berlin (kick-off: 15:30 CET). It’s a fixture of contrasting styles, with Leverkusen preferring to control the play while Union look to remain compact and counter. The Berliners are therefore suited to facing top teams, but they have only ever managed to win one of 16 meetings with the Werkself, who are looking for a fifth clean sheet of 2026 but will need to beware the home side’s threat from set pieces. Here’s all you need to know ahead of the game in our matchday news.
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After six wins in seven games, the Werkself will be looking to continue their winning run in the capital at FC Union Berlin. Coach Kasper Hjulmand spoke ahead of the match on Saturday, 21 February (kick-off: 15:30 CET) about defenders, the short preparation time and the condition of the pitch at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei.
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Union Berlin have performed particularly well against the top clubs in the Bundesliga this season with a draw at home to Bayern Munich and wins against VfB Stuttgart and RB Leipzig. This Saturday, 21 February (kick-off: 15:30 CET), the Irons now welcome the Werkself, currently sixth in the table, to the Stadion An der Alten Försterei. And the hosts are in desperate need of a win. The lowdown on our next opponents.
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It took exactly 60 minutes for the Werkself to take the lead through a perfectly finished counter-attack by Patrik Schick in the first leg of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League play-off at Olympiacos. Referring to the meeting in the league phase and the initially squandered opportunities, coach Kasper Hjulmand said afterwards: "I thought: 'Oh no, déjà-vu.'" But after the opening goal, it took just 144 seconds for the Czech to spark more wild celebrations among those in black and red in the Greek cauldron, when Schick nodded in Alejandro Grimaldo's corner. Much to the delight of the Bayer 04 fans, his teammates and his coach, who had warm words for the striker in the aftermath. The Werkself Review.
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