The Werkself have met Liverpool in four competitive matches to date, all of them in the Champions League. After a 1-0 defeat in the first leg of the 2001/02 quarter-final, Bayer 04 won 4-2 in the second leg to progress. That was the only previous victory over the Reds, for whom it was also their last defeat against German opponents in Europe.
Two further encounters followed in the 2004/05 campaign, with the English side winning both and also going on to win Europe's most prestigious title. Xabi Alonso was a Liverpool player at that time but missed the games against the Werkself through injury. There's an in-depth feature on Alonso's return to his former stomping ground HERE.
In the current Champions League season, the Reds sit second in the league phase table with nine points from three matches. After starting with a 3-1 victory at AC Milan, Arne Slot's side beat Bologna 2-0 at home before a 1-0 win at RB Leipzig. Liverpool have led longer in games than any other team, although Bayer 04 are one of six teams who are yet to trail in a Champions League game this term.
It's been an impressive start to life under Slot. The Dutchman, who moved from Feyenoord in the summer as Jürgen Klopp's successor, is shining on all fronts. The Merseyside club recently reached the quarter-finals of the EFL Cup and are top of the Premier League, where they boast the fewest goals conceded. The attack is firing on all cylinders too: Mohamed Salah has been directly involved in 12 goals in the first 10 matches, Luis Diaz in seven. Not to mention other prominent names like Cody Gakpo, Darwin Nunez or Diogo Jota. The Bayer 04 defence must therefore be prepared for a busy night at Anfield. More on tonight's opponents here.
For all Werkself fans following the game in Liverpool, Bayer 04 partner weloveholidays has summarised the best travel tips for the top attractions in the big city in the English north-west. You can find the article HERE.
For those who can't be there, you can also follow the Werkself's trip in our live blog HERE.
There will be a minute's silence before kick-off in memory of the victims of the flood disaster in eastern Spain. The players of both teams and the referees will also wear black armbands. The region around the city of Valencia was hit by severe flooding last week, killing over 200 people and leaving many more still missing.
UEFA has appointed Danny Makkelie for tonight's fixture. The 41-year-old Dutchman has overseen three competitive matches involving the Werkself to date (two wins, one draw). Makkelie is assisted by compatriots Hessel Steegstra and Jan den Vries on the touchlines, and Rob Dieperink as VAR.
Four Bayer 04 players are in action at the 35th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations being played in Morocco from 21 December to 18 January 2026: Eliesse Ben Seghir for the hosts, Edmond Tapsoba with Burkina Faso, Ibrahim Maza for Algeria and Christian Kofane with Cameroon. Updates on the AFCON matches involving Werkself players...
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Bayer 04 rounded off 2025 with an excellent 3-1 win away at RB Leipzig and now head off on their holidays for the two-week winter break. The players and coaches will be back in Leverkusen to resume training early in January. Here’s an overview of what’s planned going into 2026.
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Werkself TV shows the highlights of Bayer 04's 3-1 win at RB Leipzig Matchday 15 of the 2025/26 Bundesliga season...
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Bayer 04 ended the year with a 3-1 win away at RB Leipzig and will go into 2026 in third place in the Bundesliga table, leapfrogging their opponents, who had previously not dropped a point at the Red Bull Arena this season. Martin Terrier and Patrik Schick scored to turn around a first-half deficit before Montrell Culbreath rounded things off with a goal on his senior debut deep into added time. Ezequiel Fernández, Axel Tape and Lucas Vázquez also all returned from injury.
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