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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).
Jonas Hofmann won't be available again for German double winners Bayer 04 Leverkusen for the remainder of the calendar year.
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Bayer 04 return to action after the international break with Matchday 11 of the Bundesliga as they host 1. FC Heidenheim 1846 at the BayArena today, Saturday 23 November (kick-off 15:30 CET). The Matchday News has everything you need to know ahead of the battle with the UEFA Conference League participants.
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The Bayer 04 Women are in the quarter-finals of the DFB Pokal. The team led by coach Roberto Pätzold's beat Bundesliga rivals Turbine Potsdam 1-0 on Friday night thanks to a first competitive goal scored by Sophie Zdebel. The midfielder netted the only goal of the game on 74 minutes. Twelve days ago, the Werkself beat the Potsdam team 3-0 in the league.
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The international break is followed by the run-in to the end of the year: The Werkself entertain FC Heidenheim at the BayArena tomorrow, Saturday 23 November (kick-off: 15.30 CET/live on Sky and on Werkself Radio), on Bundesliga Matchday 11. The fixture against FC Heidenheim is the first of eight games before Christmas. Head coach Xabi Alonso, speaking at the pre-match press conference, talked about the opponents and provided updates on the Werkself squad including on Victor Boniface.
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