There is not a lot of time to enjoy the derby victory. Just three days after the 3-0 win against the Rhine neighbours, Tuesday night, 20 April (kick-off: 20.30 CEST) brings the clash with the treble winners from Munich. FC Bayern won their Bundesliga match at the weekend too in a 3-2 victory against VfL Wolfsburg. An important step for FCB on the way to the title. However, there is no talk of euphoria or anticipation in the Bavarian state capital at the moment. The reason: Head coach Hansi Flick declared his desire after the match at Wolfsburg to leave FC Bayern in the summer of 2021 in spite of his current contract.
Hannes Wolf is certain the situation "will not influence the team on the pitch." He continued: "That doesn't make them any more susceptible. We are therefore expecting them to be strong and focused as usual," he declared on Monday. "So we need another top performance. We have to defend well and use our pace on the pitch. It's time to give our all."
The praise in the media after the derby win on Saturday primarily went to Leon Bailey and Moussa Diaby. The lightning fast attacking duo scored all three goals against FC Köln. Head coach Hannes Wolf is obviously happy for and with his successful players but he highlighted the team performance. The 39-year-old: "It doesn't matter to me who gets the glory for scoring the goals in the end. The main thing is we score." The basis for winning involves every individual player working for the full 90 minutes and having the right mentality.
Long-term injured players Santiago Arias, Julian Baumgartlinger and Timothy Fosu-Mensah are sidelined for #FCBB04 as are Lars Bender and Paulinho. As all the other players are fit, probably including Florian Wirtz as an option, Hannes Wolf is now spoilt for choice – both in terms of his starting eleven as well as places in the squad.
Winter signing Demarai Gray has not yet played under Hannes Wolf. "Is it fair that Demi hasn't played yet? Probably not. But we have so many good players that we have to make a decision at a certain point," said Wolf. Grey, but also players like Aleksandar Dragovic and Mitchell Weiser can stake a claim on the training ground. Above all after the busy run of fixtures with 14 days to prepare for the away game at Werder Bremen. "Then we can reshuffle the pack."
Hannes Wolf continues to rely on the strength of his whole squad to ensure qualification for Europe. The head coach: "There are just five games left and we need points. We have to give our all tomorrow night 100%. Playing against FC Bayern gives you an extra boost and you're ready to go beyond the limits."
Match information:
Broadcasters: Sky and Werks11 Radio
Referee: The match officials will be announced on the day of the game

Strengthening the Bayer 04 Leverkusen youth teams: Konstantinos Kotsifakis will join the Werkself from Bundesliga 2 club Hertha Berlin for the 2026/27 season, where he will be a permanent member of the Leverkusen U19 coaching set-up. The German-Greek will also take on an operational role in coaching the Bayer 04 Future Team. The 29-year-old was most recently head coach of the U17s at Hertha Berlin.
Show more
Another award for the Bayer 04 head groundsman and staff: After coming top in the 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2024/25 seasons, the BayArena pitch came second in the Bundesliga Pitch of the Year ranking for the 2025/26 season. VfL Wolfsburg secured the top spot this year, with TSG Hoffenheim in third place.
Show more
Opening opponents, derby weekends, the opponents in the season finale: This information and more will be available to Bayer 04 fans on Thursday, 2 July, when the 2026/27 Bundesliga fixture list is published.
Show more
The next footballing highlight is just around the corner: the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the 23rd edition of the tournament, will be held in the USA, Canada and Mexico and feature 48 teams for the first time. Bayer04.de has all the latest on the Werkself players called up to represent their countries.
Show more
While the majority of the Bayer 04 Women are enjoying their summer break, nine Werkself players will be on duty for their national teams in the coming days. Three of them are competing for a place at the World Cup, while six are involved in two friendlies with the Germany U23 team.
Show more