The Werkself in Baku – Latest updates

+++9 November, 12.28 CET+++

Warm-up session - check! As usual our lads have great fun playing football tennis. Now it's off to lunch.

+++9 November, 10.51 CET+++

Qarabag play the Werkself in Baku today and it is the first away game for Bayer 04 in the Azerbaijani capital. The city of two million on the west coast of the Caspian Sea is the biggest city in terms of population and area in the country and the whole of the Caucasus. It is a business and cultural centre with lots of universities, research institutions, theatres and museums. Above all, the historic old town, which has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000, offers numerous tourist attractions such as palaces, mosques and well-maintained fortifications. Here are a few images of the city where it was very windy this morning. We'll have to wait and see whether the wind has an effect on tonight's game…

+++9 November, 10.27 CET+++

Before the warm-up session starts at the team hotel, let's take a look at some stats ahead of tonight's game. A win here in Baku would be the first time the Werkself have won their first four games in a European campaign. Also of interest: Bayer 04 have the biggest number of different goalscorers of all clubs in the current Europa League season. One of them is Florian Wirtz who loves to score and provide assists on the European stage: The 20-year-old has been directly involved in 22 goals in his 25 games in this competition (10 goals, 12 assists) – more than any other player since his Europa League debut in August 2020.

The Azerbaijani champions Qarabag have played German teams seven times in European competitions with six matches ending in defeat (plus one draw). At the same time, they are unbeaten in the last 13 European home games (seven wins, six draws).

+++9 November, 08.04 CET+++

Matchday! And good morning from Baku. Our lads are about to go to breakfast and that is followed by a warm-up session, the first official activity of the day. Of course, we will again report from close up to the Werkself. Here's to a successful night.

+++8 November, 19.30 CET+++

Touchdown. The Werkself landed in the Azerbaijan capital Baku at 22.30 local time after a four-hour, comfortable flight. Now it's off to the team hotel located on the Caspian Sea and the day will draw to a close after a communal evening meal - there is an important match to be played tomorrow. We say godbye for now and wish you a peaceful night's rest. See you tomorrow.

+++8 November, 11.03 CET+++

The 15 minutes of open training for the Werkself at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium are over. In cold but sunny weather, Jonathan Tah and Co. started with a range of passing drills in three small groups on one side of the pitch. That was followed by a practice match in restricted space. On the other side of the pitch, the trio of Matej Kovar, Lukas Hradecky and Niklas Lomb worked with goalkeeping coach David Thiel. Summing up: The mood? Good. Intensity? High. Now it's off to Baku.

At the final training session, sporting managing director Simon Rolfes spoke to the media about the loss of Edmond Tapsoba and competition among the goalkeepers. In addition, the 41-year-old said: "Qarabag have a very good team and they are at home. But it's also clear that we want to win to seal going through."

+++8 November, 10.38 CET+++

The Werkself have picked up maximum number of points in the UEFA Europa League campaign so far. Matchday one in Group H saw a 4-0 win against the Swedish champions Häcken at home, and that was followed by a 2-1 win away to Norwegian champions Molde. The other three points came in the first game against Qarabag (5-1). That means Bayer 04 lead the group with a perfect record ahead of Qarabag (six) and Molde (three). Häcken are currently bottom with no points.

+++8 November, 09.51 CET+++

The press conference with head coach Xabi Alonso and goalkeeper Matej Kovar is over. The areas covered this time were the situation in Group H, the loss of Edmond Tapsoba (see below) and cooperation among the goalkeepers. The press conference report is HERE.​

+++8 November, 09.30 CET+++

Bayer 04 defender Edmond Tapsoba will miss tomorrow's UEFA Europa League game away to Qarabag and the Bundesliga home game against Union Berlin on Sunday. The Burkina Faso international has to undergo an operation on his left hand following the injury suffered in last week's 5-2 DFB Pokal win away to third division SV Sandhausen. Get well soon, Eddy!

+++8 November, 09.04 CET+++

The Werkself start the second European trip of the season: Bayer 04 head off for Azerbaijan this afternoon ahead of the fourth group match in the UEFA Europa League against the Azerbaijani league champions Qarabag kicking off at 18.45 CET tomorrow.