"The games have always been evenly balanced recently. Regardless of the situation in the table, there’s lots of commitment and motivation on both sides, so the games are correspondingly hard-fought," says coach Roberto Pätzold: "The derby is even more important due to the situation in the table, as we are playing against a direct rival. In the next two home games before the break, it's important for us to establish a good position." While the Bayer 04 Women currently occupy fifth place, FC Köln, currently eighth on 25 points, could overtake them with a win on Friday night. One week after the derby, the next clash awaits on Sunday 22 February (14:00 CET) with a home game against TSG Hoffenheim, who are currently third.
FC Köln, meanwhile, have earned their strong position primarily thanks to their "very physical style of play", according to the coach: "They're having a great season and are a very tough opponent. They were particularly effective in the Hinrunde thanks to their striker Sandra Maria Jessen and a clear-cut style of play aiming straight for goal. When pressing, they create a one-on-one situation in every position. That makes it very difficult for opponents to come up with footballing solutions."
Last Saturday’s 1-0 defeat at Eintracht Frankfurt prevented the Werkself, who started the new year with two wins, from improving their position even further. "Apart from the result, we can take a lot of positives from the game. Our pressing worked, we repeatedly forced them into mistakes, had more possession and an even share of chances," said Pätzold: "Apart from the counterattacks in the final phase, we hardly allowed Frankfurt to get anything out of the game - and we even scored a goal that was within the rules, but unfortunately it was chalked off. Such close games are often decided by little things." That also goes hand in hand with a demand on his team for the derby: "We need the same desire we showed last weekend in the game against FC Köln. After the defeat, the battle for third place is no longer completely in our own hands. We want to be ready for any slip-ups from the competition."
Also encouraging is the energy shown in the Hinrunde, when the Black and Reds came back from two goals down at the Franz Kremer Stadium to level at 2-2 thanks in part to the late equaliser from Katharina Piljic from around 50 metres out. "That should give us confidence. We're prepared for a game with lots of duels and we want to control FC Köln even better than FC Nürnberg in the last home game," said the coach: "Both teams will attack with a lot of pace and the team with the greater resilience will come out on top. We are confident it will be us."
It remains to be seen if Claudia Wenger (injured following the Eintracht Frankfurt game) will be available for this game. Vanessa Haim (muscle injury), captain Friederike Repohl (torn ligament), Charlotte Voll (shoulder injury) and Shen Menglu (rehab training after torn cruciate) are all sidelined.
Derby tickets can be purchased in advance HERE from the online shop, and there will also be a matchday ticket office open from 17:00 CET. To avoid long waiting times, Bayer 04 recommend buying tickets in advance online.
Werkself Live for derby matchday:
Bayer 04 have secured the services of Serbia U19 international Aleksa Damjanovic for next season. The 17-year-old centre-forward will move from Red Star Belgrade to Leverkusen in the summer on a long-term contract. The 1.98 metre tall striker is regarded as one of the most promising attacking talents in Europe and has recently impressed with strong performances at both first team and youth level. Managing director sport Simon Rolfes and director of football Kim Falkenberg particularly praise his finishing, heading ability and physical presence in the penalty area.
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