DFB Cup: Home to Werder Bremen in last eight

Bayer 04 are at home to Bundesliga rivals Werder Bremen in the DFB Cup quarter-finals on 6/7 February. That was the outcome of the draw held held on the ARD Sportschau on Sunday night.

Oliver Roggisch, handball World Cup winner in 2007 and current manager of the Germany handball team, pulled out the balls at the German Football museum in Dortmund with ten Bayer 04 fans in the audience. The ties involving the remaining eight teams will be played on Tuesday and Wednesday, 6 and 7 February. Tickets for the game against Werder Bremen go on sale on 16 January. SC Paderborn, the only third division side left in the competition, have been drawn against record winners Bayern Munich.

Bayer 04 CEO Michael Schade commented on the tie: “A good draw even though Werder haven’t always been easy to play against in the recent past. Of course, we’re very happy to be playing at home and we’ll do all we can to continue our cup run.” Head coach Heiko Herrlich said: “It’s a tough challenge and a great opportunity at the same time. Bremen have made progress under the new coach and are continuing to improve. Werder will give us a real test, just like in the league. On the other hand, we’re at home. With our fans behind us, we have a great chance of going through to the semi-finals. We definitely want to take that chance.“

The Werkself last played Werder Bremen at the BayArena on Bundesliga matchday 16 in the middle of December and ran out deserved winners with a 1-0 victory. Bayer 04 and Werder have often met in cup competitions including the UEFA Cup semi-final in 1988 and the DFB Cup final in 2009. The last cup meeting was also in the DFB Cup in the 2015/16 campaign at the quarter-final stage: Bremen fought back from a goal down at the BayArena to win 3-1. February brings the next shoot-out in the DFB Cup.