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.
This special event showed once again how strong Bayer 04 are as a team: As part of ‘BarmeniaGothaer gives joy’, the Werkself players Edmond Tapsoba, Ibrahim Maza and Christian Kofane supported the sale of individually designed T-shirts for a good cause at the Fanwelt on Thursday. Several hundred fans came to take part in the charity campaign. Leverkusen's main sponsor BarmeniaGothaer donated the proceeds to the Fondation Edmond Tapsoba, which helps people in Tapsoba's home country of Burkina Faso in their challenging everyday lives.
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With three games to play before the end of the season, the Bayer 04 Women can break one record and equal another at SGS Essen. After three wins on the bounce, coach Roberto Pätzold's team are aiming to maintain the chance of third place in Sunday’s away game (14:00 CEST, Stadion an der Hafenstraße).
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Rüdiger Vollborn has been at the club for 40 years, he holds the record number of Bundesliga appearances for the club (401) and is the only Bayer 04 player to have won both the UEFA Cup (1988) and the DFB Pokal (1993). And the Berliner stayed with the Werkself after ending his impressive playing career as he worked as a goalkeeping coach for the following nine years. Vollborn now works under the Bayer Cross as a fan liaison officer and club archivist. Since February 2021, the personalised Black and Red lexicon takes Werkself fans under the heading of 'Rudi recounts...' on a brief trip through the history of Bayer 04 every month…
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From Ouagadougou to Leverkusen – and back: in March, Bayer 04 travelled with Edmond Tapsoba for a special project in his homeland Burkina Faso. The country where his roots and heart lie. The country where he’s more than a world-class defender: a symbol of hope and a role model for an entire generation. The result is a 45-minute documentary about Tapsoba’s long journey from Africa via Portugal to Leverkusen, which offers extraordinary, one-off and emotional insights.
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Edmond Tapsoba has signed an early extension to his contract with Bayer 04 Leverkusen. With two years left on his current deal, the 27-year-old Burkina Faso international has extended his contract until 30 June 2031. The centre-back joined as a young talent from Portuguese top-flight club Vitoria Guimaraes at the start of 2020.
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