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The Werkself and VfB Stuttgart meet for the fifth time within just eleven months. "The last matches against Stuttgart were all very exciting, intense and emotional. Not just for the fans and the players but also for us as coaches. I was always really exhausted after the last matches against them," declared Xabi Alonso with a smile at the pre-match press conference on Thursday afternoon. "We can expect a big game. I have a good feeling."
Like Bayer 04, VfB Stuttgart also have a packed fixture list at the moment. The Swabian side have been very successful in recent weeks: A first victory in the UEFA Champions League away to Juventus was followed by wins against Holstein Kiel (Bundesliga; 2-1) and FC Kaiserslautern (DFB Pokal; 2-1). Alonso: "They have a lot of quality and you can see that in every game. I have great respect for Sebastian and his work. We will have to produce our best performance levels on and off the ball."
Unavailable for the game are Amine Adli (broken leg) and Jeanuel Belocian, who has undergone a minor operation this week after persistent ankle problems.
The Werkself have conceded at least one goal in the first eight Bundesliga matches with a combined total of 15. "Of course, we are not happy about that. It's a big challenge for us to improve our defensive performances. We are hoping for a clean sheet tomorrow," said Alonso in response to a question.
The last clean sheet for Bayer 04 was on Tuesday against SV 07 Elversberg (3-0) in the DFB Pokal, following on from the first round away to Carl Zeiss Jena (1-0) and in the Champions League games against Feyenoord (4-0) and AC Milan (1-0).
Four Bayer 04 players are in action at the 35th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations being played in Morocco from 21 December to 18 January 2026: Eliesse Ben Seghir for the hosts, Edmond Tapsoba with Burkina Faso, Ibrahim Maza for Algeria and Christian Kofane with Cameroon. Updates on the AFCON matches involving Werkself players...
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Due to the last-minute postponement of the Bundesliga match between Hamburg and the Werkself on Tuesday, 13 January, Bayer 04 will reimburse the ticket price to all 3,500 fans who had already travelled to Hamburg as a sign of appreciation. The tickets remain valid for the rescheduled match (date not yet set).
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen will have to manage without centre-back Edmond Tapsoba in the coming weeks. The Burkina Faso international returned to the Werkself from the Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco with a muscle injury.
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The Bundesliga fixture between Hamburger SV and Bayer 04 Leverkusen has been postponed at short notice.
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Bayer 04 face Hamburger SV for the first time in almost eight years. Although the Hanseatic city team are often below par on the road, they are regularly in top form in front of their own fans. In particular, 18-year-old shooting star Luka Vuskovic is proving to be a real bonus for Merlin Polzin's team, both in attack and defence. However, that should not scare the Werkself: Not only was the last defeat against the newly promoted team 17 games ago, but Kasper Hjulmand's players are in with a chance of securing their fifth win in six games against HSV. Today’s matchday news.
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