
His team have happy memories of the last meeting between the two sides. On matchday 34 in the last campaign the Werkself ran riot at the Berlin Olympic Stadium with a 6-2 win against Hertha. "That match is still in the minds of the players. That gives them confidence and belief,," said Herrlich. The same applies to the 4-0 win against SC Freiburg on Sunday. In spite of the euphoria following the impressive performance of his team against Freiburg, the Bayer 04 coach warned against ignoring the basics that led to the win at the weekend. "We can't forget what was needed in terms of running, battling and working before we were able to express our quality on the pitch," said Herrlich. "The lads deserve to be praised but it's important to look to continue to build on the win."
It is clear that Bayer 04 face a tough opponent in her to Berlin. Their impressive defence (only four goals conceded in six competitive matches) drew respect from Herrlich. "They have focused on conceding as few goals as possible. That means it's a different proposition from the Freiburg game." A different proposition but the same starting eleven? That is possible. "There's a lot to say we should field the same team," said Herrlich who can be happy that no other players are ruled out of contention despite the short recovery time. At the same time, the Werkself coach has the home game against Hamburg on Sunday at the back of his mind. "We have to keep in mind that arrest for one of the other player would be good." The Werkself starting eleven for the match in the capital of Germany will be decided after the final training session before flying off on Tuesday afternoon.
Tin Jedvaj is definitely ruled out. And Lucas Alario will not travel with the team to Berlin either. Bayer 04 believe there is little chance the striker receiving permission to play before Wednesday. "If he trains here on a one-to-one basis then that will give us more in terms of Sunday's game," said Herrlich who was optimistic that the Argentinian will be in the Werkself squad for the game against Hamburg. The focus now, as Herrlich declared, is on Berlin: "We are now concentrating on Hertha Berlin and the players that are available." The coach and his team are looking for a second win of the week with the support of 600 travelling Bayer 04 fans. "We want to return with a result and hopefully three points," said Herrlich.


The Werkself face Manchester City for the very first time on Tuesday for Matchday 5 of the league phase in the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League (kick-off: 21:00 CET). The hosts sit fourth in the standings and boast huge quality in attack, while Leverkusen are looking to improve their meagre record of just one win from the last 10 games away at English clubs. A key player in that regard could be Aleix Garcia, the former City midfielder who ranks highly in several passing metrics in the Champions League this season. Here’s all you need to know ahead of the game in our matchday news.
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The Werkself's next European trip takes them to the north-west of England as Kasper Hjulmand's side take on Manchester City on Tuesday, 25 November (kick-off: 21:00 CET) on Matchday 5 in the league phase of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League campaign. As usual, we'll take you along on the #aCROSSeurope journey and report from Manchester. All times listed are in CET.
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The dress rehearsal in the Premier League for the match against the Werkself did not go well at the weekend. However, Manchester City are still unbeaten in the UEFA Champions League, the competition they won in 2023. In the first encounter with Bayer 04 this Tuesday, 25 November (kick-off: 21:00 CET), coach Pep Guardiola will be able to field just about his best line-up. The lowdown on our next opponents.
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Will the Bayer 04 U19s take the next step towards their first appearance in the knockout stage of the UEFA Youth League in the away game at Manchester City? Coach Kevin Brok is well aware of this historic opportunity, but he's not about to start worrying about the maths: "We're not concerned with the question of what might be good enough. We invest everything we can and always aim for the maximum. That's our way." The game on this penultimate Matchday 5 of the league phase takes place on Tuesday, 25 November (kick-off: 16:00 CET) at the Manchester City Academy Stadium. Werkself TV will be broadcasting the whole match exclusively for Bayer 04 club members live from 15:50 CET....
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€1,000 and food for a good cause: In keeping with the long-standing cooperation between Bayer 04 and the Tafel Leverkusen e.V. food bank, the U19s are also supporting the charitable organisation in the region. In addition to the generous cheque the team were able to donate to an organisation of their choice as a result of their participation in the UEFA Youth League, coach Kevin Brok's lads donated €500 worth of food - financed by their own team kitty. Ferdinand Pohl, Jesper Schlich and Co. also actively helped to stow the food in the Tafel's premises.
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