For the second year running, Bayer 04 and AS Roma meet in the semi-finals of the Europa League. It's the first time ever that the Werkself have reached the final four of a major European competition in two consecutive seasons. For Roma, meanwhile, it's a fourth semi-final in a row - Real Madrid are the only other side to have achieved that since the 2020/21 season.
In total, this evening will be the seventh competitive meeting between the two clubs. The first was back in the group stage of the 2004/05 UEFA Champions League, which Bayer 04 won 3-1 at home. Since then, the Black-and-Reds have been winless against the Giallorossi (D3 L2).
The two semi-final first legs in Rome are almost a year apart. Much has changed with the team currently occupying fifth place in Serie A. For a start, the Italian club signed Sardar Azmoun on loan from Leverkusen last summer. And in January, a real club legend took charge of the side in Daniele de Rossi, who has overseen an upswing in fortunes since taking up his post. With 30 points in 14 league games under the 40-year-old, the capital club have climbed from ninth to fifth in the standings. In the Europa League, where they've lost just one of their last 25 home matches, they knocked out Feyenoord on penalties in the knockout round play-offs before getting past Premier League outfit Brighton & Hove Albion in the round of 16. Roma then clinched their place in the semis with two wins over league rivals AC Milan. Our in-depth opposition profile has everything else you need to know about de Rossi's side.
There'll be a world champion in both dugouts tonight. De Rossi won the World Cup with Italy in Germany in 2006, while Xabi Alonso and Spain lifted the golden trophy in South Africa in 2010.
UEFA has appointed French official François Letexier for the first leg at the Stadio Olimpico. The 35-year-old will be assisted by his countrymen Cyril Mugnier and Mehdi Rahmouni on the sidelines, while Jérôme Brisard is the VAR.
Bayer 04 and the Plastiks company are working together. The sustainable organisation is committed worldwide to the reuse of waste and acting against waste pollution. As part of this cooperation, Bayer 04 is working with the green mining organisation in São Paulo, the most populous city in South America and hometown to club legend Paulo Sergio, where the waste recycling rate is currently only around 3%.
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After the warm reception on Tuesday for the Bayer 04 delegation led by Simon Rolfes in São Paulo, there were two events where contact with the local population was of special significance.
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A training course for external coaches covering age groups U8 to U13 on 'Effective coaching in junior football' was held at the BayArena this week. The course, with this initial event ahead of a series of training units, was aimed at coaches and sporting management of clubs in the area of Leverkusen. It was very well received.
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The dates for the final two Bundesliga fixtures of the year for the Bayer 04 Women have been confirmed: The German Football Association (DFB) confirmed details for the two games at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium on Matchdays 11 and 12 on Tuesday afternoon.
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To gain access to the stadium as a member of the media on Werkself home matchdays you need accreditation from Bayer 04. From now, you can submit the application for accreditation exclusively via our online registration form at bayer04.de.
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