…INJURY REPORT

Michael Esser, Moritz-Broni Kwarteng and Mohammed Tolba are still not available. Moritz Broschinski was ill at the beginning of the week and trained carefully today. We hope that he can train fully tomorrow, but it is still questionable for Sunday. Philipp Förster is ill and has slight problems with his hip flexors and is therefore out. All other players are ready to play. Takuma trained very well. He makes a very fresh impression and is absolutely back to 100 percent.

…LEVERKUSEN

I was in the stadium yesterday and wanted to experience Leverkusen live. That's different from watching a game on TV. I've followed a lot of Leverkusen's games over the past few months. I am very impressed by your style of play. What was created and developed there is special. When you're unbeaten for 49 games in a row, that speaks for itself. They have a very clear playing philosophy and clear processes. They have an uncanny quality in every position, which makes them incredibly dangerous. It is difficult for any team to play against Leverkusen. They always believe in turning a game around until the last minute. That speaks for an absolute team effort.

…ABOUT THE MATCH

This will be a very difficult game. We decided to give it our all as a team. We need the same energy as in the last few games and are absolutely willing to fight back and fight back in every phase of the game. We will do that too. We will also have periods of possession. We need a high level of effectiveness, that is clear. If we reflect on the performance of the past few weeks, we are more likely to be successful. Our style of play is incredibly stressful. It's hard to keep going for 100 minutes. We also need periods of rest, but then we must not become passive. Even if we defend deeper at times, we still have to remain aggressive. We are working on getting the balance even better.

Xabi Alonso will not held press conference.