FC Bayern Women are gearing up for their first home game of the 2023/24 Google Pixel Women’s Bundesliga season as Alexander Straus and his team host Köln on Matchday 2 at the FC Bayern Campus. Kick-off on Monday, 2 October is at 19:30 CEST.
State of play
With the September international break over, Bayern return to action with their second league fixture of the season. The opening game saw Straus’s team draw 2-2 away at Freiburg, with Lea Schüller and Katharina Naschenweng on the scoresheet. It places FCB sixth in the Bundesliga table coming into the weekend. Bayern had previously advanced to the DFB Cup round of 16 with a 2-0 win away at Andernach.
Bayern are looking forward to their first home game of the season.
The opponent
Köln kicked off their campaign with a 2-1 win at home to promoted RB Leipzig thanks to goals from Marleen Schimmer and Sharon Beck. It places the Cologne club fifth in the standings. Monday’s encounter is also a reunion with Daniel Weber. The Billy Goats’ coach previously worked at the Campus as a player developer and U16s coach between 2021 and 2023.
Personnel
Long-term injury absentees Carolin Simon, Weronika Zawistowska (both cruciate ligament) and Cecilía Rán Rúnarsdóttir (dislocated patella) remain unavailable for Straus. The rest of the squad has come out of the international break fit.
Goalkeeper Mala Grohs is ready for Köln.
“Perform as expected”
Alexander Straus: “The Köln team looks good. They’ve improved on last year. They have different qualities in the team and also Natalia Padilla Bidas, who brings a lot of speed. But if we perform as we expect from ourselves and play at our normal level, then we should win against Köln.”
Klara Bühl: “Köln are a team with a lot of young players but also with some older ones. So, they have a certain experience. I think Köln are very versatile, meaning we need to be prepared for various things. They’re also a team who play with a lot of desire and commitment.”
Five facts on the Köln game:
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