Back
17.04.2024Werkself-TV

Alonso ahead of #WHUB04: “The players give me no doubt”

After the week’s celebrations of the club’s first ever league title, Bayer 04 are now focused once again on their UEFA Europa League quarter-final second leg away at West Ham United on Thursday (kick-off: 9pm CEST). The Werkself are in a good position with a 2-0 lead from the first game, but it’s not over yet, as head coach Xabi Alonso and midfielder Granit Xhaka stressed at their pre-match press conference in London on Wednesday evening.

Display videos

Yes, I'd like to see videos dispalyed.

Xhaka called London home for seven years during his time at Arsenal and said he had a “great time here”. Now the Switzerland international returns for the first time with Bayer 04 and is preparing for an encounter at the London Stadium, where the 31-year-old experienced a number of exciting match-ups. “There are regularly over 60,000 people in the stadium. Same again tomorrow. And they definitely won’t be there for us. But we come here with great confidence from the first leg and want to progress. That’s clear,” he said.

Xhaka: “We’re very hungry”

When asked, the midfielder didn’t want the weekend’s title celebrations to be an excuse for Thursday. “Obviously we celebrated a little, but within reason. We have a big task ahead of us again tomorrow. We want to reach the semi-finals. We’re very hungry.”

Coach Alonso is expecting a “hard game. West Ham showed Freiburg that they can overcome a first-leg defeat.” The Hammers had lost 1-0 in Germany in their round of 16 tie but then progressed thanks to a 5-0 win back at home. “We’ll play our game and definitely won’t just defend. That’s not our way,” he added.

Granit Xhaka

The Spaniard firmly believes that the Werkself will again perform well in this second leg: “The players give me no doubt about believing in them. Their concentration, focus and hunger are special.”

More than 3,000 travelling fans

The Werkself can count on the support of over 3,000 travelling fans from Leverkusen for a sold-out away section at the London Stadium.

One person who isn’t in the UK capital is Borja Iglesias. “He’s got muscular problems. We need to wait and see how things are with him in the coming days. It could well be that he also misses Dortmund. We need to see with him and Adam Hlozek whether they’ll be ready for the Stuttgart game,” explained Alonso, who otherwise has a full squad at his disposal. And they are all ready, as the coach explained, since “we want to take our big chance in the Europa League as well.”

Related News

FBL e.V. gegründet
Women - 10.12.2025

Association of all Women's Bundesliga clubs: FBL e.V. officially founded

The clubs in the Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga have opened a new chapter in the history of women's football in Germany. With the official founding act of the "Frauen-Bundesliga FBL e.V." on Wednesday afternoon in Frankfurt am Main, Bayer 04 Leverkusen and the 13 other top-flight clubs have joined forces for the first time.

Show more
LIVE ab 13.50 Uhr | Bayer 04 - Newcastle United | UEFA Youth League
Werkself-TV - 10.12.2025

LIVE from 13:50 CET | Bayer 04 vs Newcastle United | UEFA Youth League

The Bayer 04 U19s today, Wednesday 10 December (kick-off: 14:00 CET), host Newcastle United on the sixth and final matchday in the league phase of the UEFA Youth League. For coach Kevin Brok's team, the game against the English side is about securing a place in the next stage of the competition and a historic first appearance in the knockout phase. Werkself TV will broadcast the match live and free of charge from the Ulrich Haberland Stadium from 13:50 CET...

Show more
Die PK mit Hjulmand und Quansah vor dem UCL-Heimspiel gegen Newcastle | 6. Spieltag UCL
Werkself-TV - 09.12.2025

Hjulmand ahead of #B04NEW: ‘Take the next big step’

Will Bayer 04 emulate their away wins at Benfica and Manchester City? Newcastle United are the visitors at a sold-out BayArena on Wednesday, 10 December (kick-off: 21:00 CET/live on Werkself Radio) to round off the UEFA Champions League games for the year. Coach Kasper Hjulmand spoke in advance about the momentum in Europe's premier club competition and gave an encouraging personnel update. Jarell Quansah also spoke about his experiences playing against Nick Woltemade and his wish for the Bayer 04 fans.

Show more
Nick Woltemade für Newcastle United
Champions League - 09.12.2025

Our next opponents: 'Big Nick' delighting the Magpies' fans

Newcastle United have amassed nine points after five matchdays, one more in the UEFA Champions League than the Werkself. The Magpies are also steadily improving in the Premier League, where they're currently unbeaten in four games. On Wednesday, 10 December (kick-off: 21:00 CET), Eddie Howe's side will be the visitors at the BayArena. He's also likely to field two Germany internationals in the game. The lowdown on our next opponents.

Show more
Youth League
U19 - 08.12.2025

Youth League decider against Newcastle United: ‘It’s in our own hands - we want to take our chance."

The situation ahead of the showdown is clear - and promising. The Bayer 04 U19s host Newcastle United on the sixth and final matchday of the 2025/26 UEFA Youth League phase. A win at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium would see the Werkself go through to the knockout stages of the competition for the first time. Ahead of the clash on Wednesday, 10 December (kick-off: 14:00 CET/livestream on bayer04.de and in the Bayer 04 app), coach Kevin Brok spoke about the successful build-up, his assessment of the match and the danger of underestimating the already eliminated English side.

Show more