Bayer 04 have won their last nine home games against Eintracht Frankfurt in all competitions, by an aggregate score of 32-5. For SGE it's their longest current run of away defeats against one club, while for the Werkself it's their longest current winning streak at home against a current top-flight side.
This match is also the fixture that's been played the most times in the Bundesliga (76) without ever ending 0-0. In last season's two meetings alone there were 10 goals. In the current campaign, Bayer 04 boast the second-best attack, scoring 2.8 goals per game on average. Frankfurt have also been prolific of late, though: since Matchday 7 of this Bundesliga season, SGE have scored in every match and netted a handsome 20 goals in total - one more than Leverkusen. Only FC Bayern Munich have hit the net more times in this period (24).
Following Thursday's home match against Molde FK, today's meeting with Eintracht forms the second part of this year's 'Festival of Friends', which covers the final three home games of 2023. In the area around the BayArena, there will be numerous Christmas activities for young and old, including a bouncy castle and a reindeer rodeo this Sunday (see map below).
The visitors currently sit in seventh place in the table with 21 points. The aim before Christmas is to move up another place so that they can go into the new year in one of the European berths. Their inconsistent performances haven't helped in this mission: after being knocked out of the DFB Cup 2-0 by third-tier side 1. FC Saarbrücken, they thrashed none other than Bayern 5-1 in the league. That was followed by another 2-0 loss in the UEFA Europa Conference League at Aberdeen. The Eagles are also struggling with personnel problems at present. Top scorer Omar Marmoush is suspended today after collecting five bookings, while Germany goalkeeper Kevin Trapp and versatile midfielder Eric Junior Dina Ebimbe are doubts after coming off injured in midweek. There's more on Eintracht, their team news, strengths and weaknesses in our extensive opposition analysis.
Christian Dingert is the referee for today's match. The 43-year-old has overseen 15 games involving the Werkself to date, with a record of seven wins, three draws and five defeats. Assisting Dingert are Benedikt Kempkes and Nikolai Kimmeyer, with Sascha Stegemann as the VAR.
Delivery fees have now been reintroduced to purchases from the Bayer 04 online shop.
Show moreThe seventh edition of the ‘Einfach Fußball’ ('Simply Football') Cup once again delighted participants and spectators alike. On Saturday in the Ostermann Arena in Leverkusen, around 200 sports-mad children, young people and adults with disabilities had the opportunity to compete with players from other clubs and to socialise off the pitch. A highlight of the tournament was the visit of two players from the Bayer 04 women's team.
Show moreRüdiger Vollborn has been at the club for 40 years, he holds the record number of Bundesliga appearances for the club (401) and is the only Bayer 04 player to have won both the UEFA Cup (1988) and the DFB Pokal (1993). And the Berliner stayed with the Werkself after ending his impressive playing career as he worked as a goalkeeping coach for the following nine years. Vollborn now works under the Bayer Cross as a fan liaison officer and club archivist. Since February 2021, the personalised Black and Red lexicon takes Werkself fans under the heading of 'Rudi recounts...' on a brief trip through the history of Bayer 04 every month…
Show moreIt's the end of the annual Black and Red Week! Today, Sunday 1 December, there's an exclusive offer on Bayer 04 membership...
Show moreWerkself-TV shows the highlights of Bayer 04’s 2-1 win at 1. FC Union Berlin on the 12th matchday of the 2024/25 Bundesliga campaign…