Women aiming to 'apply pressure' in last away outing at Duisburg

A win over already relegated Duisburg could also benefit the Black-and-Reds in the table - depending on how their rivals fare. Bayer 04 are sixth in the standings with 28 points, four less than fifth-placed SGS Essen, who can secure their position two hours earlier on Saturday against 1. FC Köln. If SGS slip up, Leverkusen need to take advantage.

"It's not in our own hands anymore," said de Pauw. "We therefore need to make sure we win our own game and ideally apply pressure on Essen." After the frustrating 1-0 defeat at RB Leipzig and the 2-1 loss to newly crowned champions FC Bayern Munich, the motivation to take maximum points from the last two fixtures is high. Bayer 04 Women end the season at home to SV Werder Bremen on Monday 20 May (kick-off 15:30 CEST).

Even though MSV have collected just four points in 20 league games this season, the Dutch coach is warning his team: "Despite relegation, Duisburg will be motivated, particularly as it's their last home match. You saw that already in their last game at Bremen," he said, referring to the 4-2 defeat last weekend. "They don't look like a team who are relegated and there are no easy games in the league anyway."

De Pauw: 'very combative team'

That puts even more onus on Leverkusen's technical quality. "We're up against a very combative team, who like to press early," added de Pauw. "We need to find ways to put them under pressure regardless. We want to play our typical Bayer 04 football and maybe press a bit higher than against Bayern. Our approach in possession will be no different, though."

In this undertaking, no major changes are expected to the line-up. "The best players who have trained the best will play," said the coach. Sofie Zdebel remains a doubt following her tonsilitis, while Charlotte Voll (rehab after shoulder injury) and Melissa Friedrich (ankle ligament tear) have been ruled out for the rest of the season.