Just nine days separate the 2-1 defeat in Frankfurt in the first Bundesliga fixture in the New Year and the DFB Cup clash with Eintracht Frankfurt, which was moved from the end of December to 12 January at the request of Bayer 04. “The short period of time between the two is obviously unusual,” said Peter Bosz at the pre-match press conference on Monday and then he moved onto his analysis of the opponents. The 56-year-old added: “We’re up against a very good opponent. Of course, I don’t know what Adi Hütter (Eintracht Frankfurt, ed.) is intending to do but I can imagine they will try to play the same way they did two weeks ago – they did very well. But even more important is the way we play.”
In terms of their own game, Bosz sees a need for improvement for his team “in using the pitch” compared with the Bundesliga defeat at Eintracht. “That’s why we found it so difficult to play good football. We want to do better now,” said the head coach.
Bosz has the same players available for the second round tie as in the 1-1 draw against Werder Bremen on Saturday. “Florian Wirtz will be rested again tomorrow,” declared the Dutchman. The experienced Lars Bender, who made a 30-minute appearance against Werder Bremen following his recent injury, is again available. So there are no changes to the squad compared with the Bremen game.
For Bayer 04, the cup competition is “very important. The route is short. We saw what it’s like to be in the final last year. And when you play in a final then you also want and have to win it. And that’s what we want to do this time,” said Bosz.
A win against Eintracht Frankfurt would see the Werkself play at Regional League Rot-Weiss Essen in the Round of 16 in the DFB Cup. “To be honest: I only found out who our next opponents will be if we beat Frankfurt two days ago,” Bosz said. “But there’s no sense thinking about the next opponent if you don’t go through. So our full focus is on Eintracht Frankfurt first.”
Match info:
Broadcaster: Sky and Werks11 Radio
Referee: The match officials will be announced on the day of the game
Under the motto ‘Sound of Dreams - #aCROSS Europe 2025/26’, Bayer 04 are turning this season's UEFA Champions League season into a festival. In addition to a Spotify playlist that fans can use to get in the mood for the Champions League nights, there is also a tour pass with stickers for the respective UCL matches exclusively for Bayer 04 Club members. These could be picked up in the respective weeks of the matches. The sticker for the final clash in the league phase (Villarreal, 28 January, 21:00 CET) is now available at the Fanwelt. The competition for all diligent sticker collectors is also now open. Read on for further information.
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This afternoon, Saturday 24 January (kick-off: 15.30 CET), Bayer 04 host SV Werder Bremen, who are winless in their last seven league games. Nevertheless, in their last outing, a 3-3 draw against Eintracht Frankfurt, where they conceded a late equaliser, the Green and Whites did show their team spirit. The Werkself, led by birthday boy Patrik Schick, will be looking to counter this and secure their first three points of the new year on this ‘!Never Again’ remembrance matchday to commemorate the victims of National Socialism. Read on for the latest information in today's matchday news.
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Happy birthday, Patrik Schick! On his special day, it's not just the Czech striker who can look forward to lots of presents and hopefully many more goals – Bayer 04 fans can also get their hands on a free number 14 print when they buy a Werkself jersey today, January 24! In addition, a match-worn jersey belonging to the now 30-year-old will be raffled off among all purchasers next week.
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Werkself-TV shows the highlights of the Bayer 04 women's 2-1 win at 1. FC Union Berlin on the 15th matchday of the Google Pixel Frauen-Bundesliga 2025/26.
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