Unfortunately, long delays are expected travelling to and from a game by car due to various roadworks. The A1 (Dortmund in the direction of Cologne) has the right lane closed between the Leverkusen interchange and the Leverkusen West interchange with traffic restricted to one lane. The stretch between the Köttersbach bridge and the Leverkusen interchange has the left lane closed with two lanes open to traffic.
Today's game is the fourth competitive match between the two clubs and the first meeting in the UEFA Champions League since the 2002/03 season. Both teams are currently in a good position in the table: The Black and Reds are sixth on ten points and Inter Milan are second on 13 points behind leaders Liverpool. In their previous games, the Nerazzurri have clocked up the following results: 0-0 at Manchester City, 4-0 against Red Star Belgrade and 1-0 wins against Young Boys, Arsenal and RB Leipzig. Inter are the only team yet to concede and if they keep a clean sheet today then they would be the first team to achieve that feat in the first six matches in a Champions League campaign.
While the Italians, with former Leverkusen player Hakan Calhanoglu, have the best defence in the use of the season so far, the Werkself have top marks in other areas: The Leverkusen pass completion rate is 90% back of the second highest of all the 36 teams. That is only surpassed by Manchester City (92.6%). The Black and Reds have also shone in counter pressing: Leverkusen have found their own players with 84% of passes when under pressure from the opponents. Again Manchester City are the top side (87.7%) in that respect.
Inter Milan succeeded in securing victory in their last match in Serie A with a comfortable 3-1 win against newly promoted Parma at home on Friday night. The reigning Italian champions are set up for the Champions League clash with the Werkself. Inter are unbeaten in 13 games with the last defeat coming two and a half months ago. The Italian side are currently third in the table three points behind leaders Atalanta having played one game less. More on tonight's opponents can be found in our lowdown on the next opponents.
Following the press conference on Monday afternoon with Xabi Alonso and Edmond Tapsoba (HERE is the report), the Inter coach Simone Inzaghi and midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu spoke about today's game. Head coach Inzaghi said: "We definitely have to be at our best in the game against Leverkusen. We are playing one of the strongest teams in Europe who have only lost three games over the last 16 months. Therefore, we have prepared for a game against a very strong team."
Calhanoglu, who played for Bayer 04 from 2014 to 2017, said: "It's my first time in Leverkusen in seven years. I'm looking forward to seeing a few familiar faces. We are facing a great team but we have to focus on ourselves. We want to build on our previous good performances."
Anyone wanting to discover the latest information ahead of the game can take a look at the new Werkself Live. The matchday magazine, that includes key facts and stats on the match, is available at the BayArena. Alternatively it is available free online. HERE is the e-paper.
UEFA has appointed Slavko Vincić as the referee for today's game. It is the third match for the 45-year-old Slovenian involving the Werkself (one win, one draw). The assistant referees are fellow countrymen Tomaz Klancnik and Andraz Kovacic with Alen Borosak in action as the VAR.
The match will be broadcast live on DAZN. As ever, supporters unable to be at the match can follow the game on Werkself Radio. The audio broadcast starts 30 minutes before kick-off with commentary provided by Cedric Pick. In addition, the live text update service will keep fans up-to-date. Both Werkself Radio and the live text update service are available at bayer04.de and on the Bayer 04 app.
Video game producer Electronic Arts (EA) has announced the nominees for the Men's and Women's Team of the Year (TOTY) for EA Sports FC 26. With Patrik Schick and Alejandro Grimaldo for the men and Vanessa Fudalla for the women, there are three Bayer 04 players included. Fans of the Black-and-Reds can vote for each top XI of 2025 from now until 18:59 CET on Monday 12 January.
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The Werkself host Mainz at the BayArena on matchday 24 in the 2025/26 Bundesliga season. The match is on Saturday, 28 February, at 15:30 CET. Information on ticket sales.
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The long-standing successful collaboration between Bayer 04 and the transport service provider wupsi GmbH has been expanded: From January 2026, 100 wupsi bikes with Bayer 04 branding will be available for hire throughout the city of Leverkusen. They will complement the many existing offers and services that provide key support, especially for fans travelling to and from home matches at the BayArena.
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The Werkself are back! Following the two-week winter break, head coach Kasper Hjulmand's team began the new year with an open session on Sunday. After Robert Andrich and his teammates arrived in Leverkusen yesterday for the official check-in, they got back down to business a day later in front of around 1,200 fans at the Ulrich Haberland Stadion. The report from the Werkself's first session of 2026.
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