
Head coach Achim Feifel is expecting a similar game against the third-placed team as in the cup tie on Tuesday: "The opponents are the favourites again. They showed their strengths in the cup game. Although they did miss a lot of clear-cut chances. We did have luck on our side on lots of occasions and that can change on Friday."
The 55-year-old is again expecting a hard-fought game: "Hoffenheim will be looking to take revenge for the defeat in the cup tie. That makes them even more difficult to play against than normal." His team will need to produce a similarly impressive performance to the one on Tuesday: "You have to put opponents like that under pressure so that they can't get on the front foot. You could see that clearly in the cup game: When we didn't apply enough pressure and gave the opponent too much space they were able to create good goalscoring opportunities. But as soon as our pressing worked well, we were able to force TSG into making mistakes and launch counter-attacks."
The personnel situation ahead of the match has continued to ease compared with recent games. Only long-term injuries Melissa Friedrich, Pauline Wimmer (both torn cruciates) and Karoline Heinze (back problems) are still sidelined. Isabel Kerschowski returns to the squad after recovering from muscle problems. There will be a change between the sticks: Anna Klink, who is the number one in the league, returns in goal.

The fourth showdown in the VBL Club Championship 2025/26 starts for the Leverkusen eSports team today, Thursday 22 January (live on the B04eSports Twitch channel and on the Bayer 04 app from 19:00 CET). In the online preliminary round, the Black and Reds will once again compete with six previously drawn opponents for a place in the Top 16 and the associated entry into the offline knockout round in Berlin on 2 February at the fourth showdown. The lowdown on our next three opponents in the online preliminary round.
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The fourth European away trip of the season in the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 takes the Werkself to the Greek capital. Head coach Kasper Hjulmand's team are away to Greek double winners Olympiacos on matchday seven in the UCL league phase. The match at the Karaiskakis Stadium is on Tuesday, 20 January (kick-off: 21:00 CET). We'll be taking you on a trip to Athens and reporting on the Werkself close-up...
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A great honour for Bayer 04 Women's German international: as part of the 2025 Sports Awards, Carlotta Wamser entered her name into the City of Leverkusen's Golden Book. On Tuesday, she looked back on a special year in a talk in the Morsbroich Castle hall of mirrors.
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It was a disappointing night in Athens: The Werkself lost 2-0 away to Olympiacos on Matchday 7 in the league phase of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League campaign. In a match that was intense and fiery from the outset, the high-pressing home side made the better start and took the lead through Costinha on two minutes. Although the Werkself had a number of chances to equalise, the clinical Greek side increased the lead to 2-0 shortly before half-time (45+1’). In the second half, Leverkusen once again gave their all and showed total commitment but, despite their best efforts, the Black and Reds were unable to break down the Olympiacos defence on the night.
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