Women's Bundesliga live: Leverkusen host Frankfurt in Champions League clash

TVS News AI, editorially supervised, presents Women's Bundesliga live: Leverkusen host Frankfurt in Champions League clash.

Kickoff on Saturday at 14:00 at the Ulrich-Haberland-Stadion: On matchday 7 of the Women's Bundesliga, Bayer 04 Leverkusen host Eintracht Frankfurt – fourth place taking on third. A single point separates the two clubs ahead of the head-to-head.

Whoever wins the match climbs to the other's position – and strengthens their standing in the four-way battle for Champions League spots. Lose, and the gap to the top widens while the chasing pack closes in from behind. The Sportschau live ticker will follow the match throughout.

Frankfurt looking to shake off the Bayern defeat

The Hessian side sit on 13 points in third place – the same position they finished in last season. Their last competitive match before the international break, however, didn't go to plan: against FC Bayern München, they suffered a 1:0 defeat. The match was, according to Sportschau, "open, but short on highlights" – the shock result never came because the Munich side narrowly held the upper hand. Before that, Eintracht had won six straight matches across all competitions, after their season start had got off to a bumpy beginning with elimination in Champions League qualifying and a draw against Nürnberg. Today, a new winning streak is meant to begin in Leverkusen.

Coach Niko Arnautis responds to the Bayern loss with two changes: in central defense, the experienced Sara Doorsoun comes into the starting lineup in place of Østenstad. In midfield, Dilara Acikgöz replaces Hayley Raso.

Leverkusen eyeing a third straight win

The Werkself have made a strong start to the season: 12 points from six matches, with defeats only against Wolfsburg (2:1) and Munich (3:2) – each narrowly, against the league's top two. Before the international break, Roberto Pätzold's team turned a 0:2 deficit against Werder Bremen into a 3:2 victory. Cornelia Kramer scored twice and sealed Bayer's third consecutive win.

Pätzold has to make two changes due to injuries: Paulina Tomasiak and Sofie Zdebel are out with muscular problems, with Paulina Platner and Marlene Müller stepping into the starting XI. Goalkeeper Borggräfe, who had to be taken off early with an injury before the international break, is fit again and starts in goal.

Fudalla still waiting for her moment

In last season's first meeting, Bayer came out on top in Leverkusen 2:1 – thanks to a brace from Vanessa Fudalla. The reverse fixture was decided 1:0 in Eintracht's favor with a goal from Blomqvist. Strikingly, Fudalla is still waiting for her first scoring contribution this season and sat out the full 90 minutes on the bench in the last league match. Whether she plays a role today will be decided this afternoon.

What this means for you

Third versus fourth is your early indicator of where Leverkusen and Frankfurt really stand – between the ambition of being up there and the reality that Wolfsburg and Bayern currently can't be caught. Goals, cards and substitutions come via the Sportschau live ticker from 14:00 onwards.