Just two days separate tomorrow's game and the 2-1 win against VfB Stuttgart in the DFB Cup Round of 16 on Wednesday. Dortmund played on Tuesday when they went out of the competition after a 3-2 defeat against Werder Bremen. "They’ve had a day more for recovery and training," Peter Bosz said at the pre-match press conference.
The situation with availability in defensive midfield remains unclear: Julian Baumgartlinger, who was ruled out through injury on Wednesday, was not back in full training yesterday. "If he doesn't train today then he won't be in the squad," said Bosz who is also without Kerem Demirbay due to a one-match ban. Charles Aránguiz returned to the training ground this week for individual sessions but is not available for the clash with Borussia Dortmund.
That leaves just one of the four nominal holding midfielders: Exequiel Palacios. The winter signing made his debut for the Black and Reds against Stuttgart after serving a ban relating to his time in Argentina. Bosz: "While he's only played one game, I have seen him in training for a couple of weeks. He's a good player and I hope he can show that in the Bundesliga."
For the position next to Palacios, there are "several options," said Bosz. "Nothing is ruled out. I'll see which players I have available and then consider how we have the best chance of winning with them. That will decide how we play."
A look at the table shows the importance of the game against Dortmund: A win would reduce the gap to BVB to just two points but defeat would extend it to eight. Accordingly, the Bayer 04 head coach Bosz emphasised: "If we want to stay in touch with the top then we have to get a positive result." In addition to the former Leverkusen player Julian Brandt, who Bosz says has made "very good" progress, the focus at the moment is primarily on Dortmund's new signing Erling Haaland. The 19-year-old Norwegian has scored eight goals in his first four games. In response to the question of how to stop Haaland, Bosz answered: "I had the same question about Bayern Munich and Robert Lewandowski. We can only stop players like that as a team – we did that in the first half of the season in Munich. And that's what we want to do again this time."
Match information:
Referee: Markus Schmidt (Stuttgart)
Broadcaster: Sky (TV) and Werkself Radio (bayer04.de)
Attendance: 30,210 (sold-out)
A simple approach to sport with games, fun and a highlight at the end: Bayer 04 organised a very special training session for 40 participants aged between six and 27 in cooperation with the Football Association of the Middle Rhine (FVM). At the day of action for women and girls with disabilities at the Kurtekotten Performance Centre, many of the participants gained their first experience of football.
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On Saturday, 28 March, the lights will go out again at the BayArena from 20:30 pm to 21:30. As in previous years, Bayer 04 once again take part in the WWF Earth Hour campaign under the motto "We're switching off" as the club wants to set a collective example for more climate and environmental protection together with people, cities and companies around the world.
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Less than a year ago, Kerim Alajbegovic moved from the Bayer 04 U19s to Austrian top-flight club FC Red Bull Salzburg. The forward’s development since then has been impressive. In 36 matches, including in the UEFA Europa League, the 18-year-old has scored 14 goals. In the summer, Alajbegovic, now a Bosnia international, will return to Leverkusen - and thus not only achieve the next milestone still early in his career, but also enrich the Werkself squad with his footballing versatility and determination.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen have extended the contract with forward Nathan Tella ahead of schedule. The versatile 26-year-old, who can be deployed as a right winger, false nine or left winger, has penned a new contract to 30 June 2031. Tella joined the Werkself from Championship club Southampton in 2023. His previous contract ran to the summer of 2028.
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Nathan Tella has extended his contract with Bayer 04 to 2031. In an interview with Werkself TV, the 26-year-old talks about fulfilling his dreams, his positive outlook on life and his goals for the future. He answers the questions in English - all except the last one, which he addresses directly to the fans...
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