Matchday news #SVWB04: Weserstadion-bound with 4,200 fans

#SVWB04 – Match facts

Up till now, Bremen have found it difficult to score on home turf and have yet to win at home in three attempts. Werder haven't even scored a single goal at home, with all 12 netted so far coming away from home. As a result, the Green and Whites currently lie second from bottom in the home table with just one point from three games, while they're second in the away rankings with ten out of a possible 12 points.

The fact that Leverkusen have lost just one of their last 14 competitive matches against Bremen should also give them confidence. In March 2019, they went down 3-1 at the BayArena. The last away defeat was even longer ago. The Black & Reds lost 2-1 in October 2016, meaning Werder Bremen's last home win against the Werkself was eight years ago..

Both sides have several players capable of getting onto the scoresheet. While the Werkself's 18 Bundesliga goals to date have come from a total of ten different players, eight different scorers have netted a total of 12 goals for Bremen this season.

Alonso and his team can look forward to terrific support in Bremen: 4,200 Leverkusen supporters will watch the game at the Weserstadion, meaning the visitors' block is sold out. Incidentally, it was moved from the upper tier to the lower tier at the start of the season.

Memories of the last encounter

The last occasion on which the Werkself and Werder Bremen met was on 14 April 2024, a historic day for Bayer 04. The Black & Reds won 5-0 at the BayArena and were crowned German champions for the first time in the club's history. Florian Wirtz scored the first hat-trick of his professional career - just one of many stories to come out of this match. When asked about it at yesterday's press conference, head coach Xabi Alonso said: "It's a wonderful memory we'll never forget. But it's a new season now, the game back then no longer has any bearing."

focus on bremen

Bremen are currently eighth in the table with 11 points. Above all, the north German side have impressed above all with their team spirit. Around a month ago at TSG Hoffenheim, for example, coach Ole Werner's team came back from being 3-0 down early on to win 4-3. At VfL Wolfsburg, SVW trailed 1-0 but won 4-2 in the end. "We stuck to what we wanted to play and really upped the ante in terms of quality and accuracy. That was really good football," said Werner after the game. Further information on today's opposition can be found in our lowdown on the next opponents.

Fan information

The Bayer 04 fan support team has put together a comprehensive travel package for the many fans travelling to the match.  It's available HERE.

A Minute's silence and black armbands

There will be a minute's silence in honour of former Werder goalkeeper Dieter Burdenski ahead of kick-off. Bremen's honorary captain and record appearance-maker in the Bundesliga passed away unexpectedly on 9 October at the age of 73. Both teams will wear black armbands.

Badstübner in charge

The German Football Association (DFB) has appointed Florian Badstübner as the referee for the clash at the Weserstadion. The 33-year-old has previously taken charge of three competitive matches involving the Werkself (two wins, one draw). Markus Schüller and Philipp Hüwe will assist Badstübner on the touchline today, with Pascal Müller on VAR duty.

broadcaster - Werkself Radio and Live text updates

As usual, Werkself Radio is available for anyone unable to be at today's game. The audio broadcast begins 30 minutes before kick-off with commentary provided by Niko Hartmann and Cedric Pick. In addition, the live text update service will keep you up-to-date to ensure you don't miss any of the key match action. Both Werkself Radio and the live text update service are available at bayer04.de and on the Bayer 04 app.