Matchday updates #SVSB04: First competitive game against Sandhausen

#SVSB04 – match facts

SV Sandhausen and Bayer 04 meet in a competitive match for the first time. Sandhausen are the 91st opponent for the Werkself in the DFB Pokal, and Bayer 04 are opponent number 38 for SVS. Sandhausen have lost all of their last five cup ties against Bundesliga teams and only come out on top in three out of 17 cup ties against top-flight sides – on penalties each time.

mug donations for a good cause

SV Sandhausen are organising mug donations for the cup tie – including in the away section – for two-and-a-half-year- old Liem who is suffering from leukaemia. To increase Liem’s chances of being healthy again, he needs a stem cell donation. All money raised from the mug donations will go to the German Bone Marrow Donor Register (DKMS). Anybody wishing to make an additional donation can do so directly to the DKMS donation account using the following details:

IBAN: DE32 7004 0060 8987 0005 79
Reference: LYB001, Liem

3,000 Bayer 04 Fans at sandhausen

The Werkself can once again look forward to great support on the road. Given the demand for tickets, Bayer 04 endeavoured to obtain a bigger allocation ahead of the cup tie. 3,000 Bayer 04 fans are set to travel to Sandhausen tomorrow. Standing tickets are still available with the ticket office at the ground opening at 16.30 CET. According to SV Sandhausen, 9,000 to 10,000 of their own fans are expected to attend the match.

focus on SVS

SV Sandhausen recently put Jens Keller in charge of the team. The 52-year-old coach, who took Schalke 04 to the Round of 16 in the Champions League in 2013/14, is tasked with winning promotion. Keller's first outing as head coach at SVS was successful with a 2-1 away win Sandhausen against Borussia Dortmund II.

The possibility of going back up is on. The third division team are currently seventh in the table with 19 points from 13 games with only four points separating them from a play-off spot. Further information on today's opposition can be found in our lowdown on the next opponents.

Hempel is the ref – no VAR

The German Football Association (DFB) has appointed Richard Hempel to referee the cup tie. This will be the first game involving the Werkself for the 25-year-old match official. He will be assisted by Tobias Schultens and Eric-Dominic Weisbach on the touchlines and the fourth official is Lars Ebert. VAR is not used in the second round of the DFB Pokal.

Werkself Radio and Live text

As usual, Werkself Radio is available for anybody unable to be at today's game. The audio broadcast begins 30 minutes before kick-off with commentary provided by Niko Hartmann and Cedric Pick. In addition, the live text update service will keep you up-to-date to ensure you don't miss any of the key match action. Both Werkself Radio and the live text update service are available at bayer04.de and on the Bayer 04 app.