The Werkself's record against Borussia could be a lot worse: they haven't lost to the Foals in 11 games and actually won nine of those. Patrik Schick has particularly enjoyed recent meetings, having netted in four of his last five appearances against Gladbach in a Bayer 04 shirt.
Set pieces could also be key again for Kasper Hjulmand's men on Sunday evening, as the Werkself have scored five times from dead balls in their three league games so far this season - three from free kicks and two penalties. That's the most in the Bundesliga.
After a slow start to the campaign with just one point and no goals scored in the first three league matches of the season, Gladbach coach Gerardo Seoane had to pack his bags on Monday, with U23 boss Eugen Polanski taking charge for the time being. The former Foals player, who also had spells at Hoffenheim and Mainz in the Bundesliga, will have to come up with something in attack as he's without two star players in captain and frontman Tim Kleindienst as well as winger Robin Hack because of injury. Summer signings Haris Tabakovic, Shuto Machino and Giovanni Reyna are still yet to get off the mark, although the Foals have registered the second-most attempts on goal and the second-most crosses of all Bundesliga teams - all that's been lacking is the cutting edge. Polanski will be hoping to change that at Leverkusen and also shore up the recently shaky defence. There's more on the Borussia from Mönchengladbach in our extensive opposition report.
Today's referee Felix Zwayer last oversaw the Werkself in the 4-1 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt on Matchday 24 of last season. Bayer 04's overall record under his watch is also positive: the Black-and-Reds have won 19 out of 36 fixtures, drawn eight and lost nine. Assisting the 44-year-old on the touchlines will be Robert Kempter and Christian Dietz, with Florian Lechner as the fourth official and Christian Dingert as the video assistant.
Sunday evening's clash will be shown live on DAZN in Germany. The audio broadcast starts 30 minutes before kick-off with commentary provided by Niko Hartmann and Florian Bechholz. In addition, the live text update service will keep you up-to-date. Both Werkself Radio and the live text update service are available at bayer04.de and on the Bayer 04 app.
At the end of the first week of competitive matches this season, the sold-out BayArena will host Borussia Mönchengladbach on Sunday, 21 September (kick-off: 17:30 CEST/live on DAZN and Werkself Radio). Bayer 04 head coach Kasper Hjulmand spoke ahead of the game about the Foals following the recent change of coach and possible options for the double pivot.
Show moreBayer 04 Leverkusen will have to manage without striker Cornelia Kramer for the next few weeks. The 22-year-old, the Werkself's top scorer last season with twelve goals, suffered a muscle injury in her right thigh in training.
Show moreBehind twice, Alejandro Grimaldo's next free-kick goal, six UCL debuts and a last-minute equaliser - Bayer 04 and FC Copenhagen delivered an entertaining game with a nerve-wracking finale on matchday 1 in the league phase of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League campaign. The Werkself review brings you facts, stats and opinions on the opening game in Europe’s elite competition this term.
Show moreWerkself-TV shows the highlights of Bayer 04's 2-2 draw at FC Copenhagen on the 1st matchday of the UEFA Champions League 2025/26...
Show moreA nerve-wracking start to Europe's premier club competition! On Matchday 1 of the group stage of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League, the Werkself drew 2-2 (0-1) with Danish record champions FC Copenhagen. After an early goal from Jordan Larsson (9'), the Werkself equalised late on with another direct free kick from Alejandro Grimaldo (82'). The hosts responded just four minutes later with a goal that put them 2-1 up. But Leverkusen refused to give up and, within five minutes, Pantelis Hatzidiakos was forced into scoring an own goal (90+1) to make it 2-2, which is how the game ended.
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