Yes, I'd like to see videos dispalyed.
The Werkself have six games in three competitions within 21 days until the end of the year. When asked about possible rotation after the convincing 2-0 win at Manchester City in the Champions League, Kasper Hjulman explained : "The programme is very tight, we need all the players. That's why we're happy that some of them will be back on Saturday and can go into the game with fresh legs." Back in the squad are Edmond Tapsoba and Robert Andrich, who were suspended in Manchester, as well as Jonas Hofmann and Martin Terrier, who are not in the Champions League squad.
In addition to the long-term injured Exequiel Palacios and Ezequiel Fernández, goalkeeper Janis Blaswich, Arthur, Lucas Vázquez and Axel Tape will also be missing. Hjulmand: "Lucas and Axel are doing very well. They are in full training, maybe they will return next week."
Alejandro Grimaldo was also a topic of discussion at the press conference on Friday afternoon. With eight goals and five assists, the Spaniard is the club's best scorer and provider. "He's very important for the team's flexibility," said Hjulmand. "We give him a lot of freedom and he uses it to find the right spaces and give the team structure. Whether on the wing, in midfield or as a ten, he is a top player and also has a very professional attitude. And he takes responsibility as a leader."
On Saturday night at the BayArena, the third-placed team will host the fourth-placed side in the Bundesliga table. One point separates the two teams. While the Werkself have the second-best attack in the league, BVB can boast the second-best defence. "They are a top team, as they showed again this week in the Champions League against Villarreal (4-0, ed.). They are very structured and bring a high level of intensity," said Hjulmand.
The Dane is therefore looking forward to this top match: "We want to put in another good performance, play our game, take the next step and get better and better."
Bayer 04 will also be setting up collection points for food donations for the seventh time in front of A Block (south-east) and in front of the north-west entrance (under the autobahn). Fans can donate food and toiletries to the Leverkusen food bank from the time the stadium opens at 16:30 CET until kick-off and thereby do a good turn in the run-up to Christmas.
In addition, a video greeting station will be set up in the area in front of Block A3, also from 16:30 to 18:30. Here, fans of the Werkself and the entire Bayer 04 family can send their seasonal messages.
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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