Leverkusen Hit by Injury Crisis: 4 Stars Out vs Chelsea

Chelsea Bayer Leverkusen release injury statement ahead of Chelsea as four players to miss friendly Bayer Leverkusen travel to London to face Chelsea in Blues' first friendly of pre-season footballlondon Bookmark Share Comments Chelsea By Sam Truelove Content Editor 15:30, 8 AUG 2025 Bookmark Erik ten Hag's Bayer Leverkusen side take on Chelsea on Friday (Photo by Rene Nijhuis/MB Media/Getty Images) Sign up to the free Chelsea newsletter for the latest Blues news straight to your inbox More Newsletters Subscribe Please enter a valid email Something went wrong, please try again later. More Newsletters We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. More info Thank you for subscribing! We have more newsletters Show me See Our Privacy Notice See Our Privacy Notice × Group 28 Sign up to the free Chelsea newsletter for the latest Blues news straight to your inbox Invalid email Something went wrong, please try again later. Sign Up No thanks, close We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. More info × Group 28 Thank you for subscribing! We have more newsletters Show Me No thanks, close See our Privacy Notice Bayer Leverkusen will be without four players for their pre-season friendly against Chelsea on Friday evening. The Blues welcome the Bundesliga side to Stamford Bridge in what is the west Londoners' first pre-season friendly of the season. Enzo Maresca and his players had a much longer 2024/25 campaign than usual due to their Club World Cup success, with the squad only returning to training at Cobham on Monday. Chelsea play Bayer Leverkusen on Friday and then AC Milan on Sunday before the Premier League season gets under way next weekend. The Blues face Crystal Palace on Sunday, August 17 and Maresca will want to use the two pre-season friendlies to get as many minutes into his players' legs as possible. Leverkusen have already played four friendlies this summer, winning three of them, so will be a tough challenge for Maresca's men. Erik ten Hag will be without four players for the clash in London, though, with Exequiel Palacios, Jonas Hofmann, Arthur and Malik Tillman not making the trip. This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more Sky Sports deal Sky Sports discounted Premier League and EFL package Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £192 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more. Sky will show at least 215 live Premier League games next season, an increase of up to 100 more. £35 Sky Get Sky Sports here In a statement the German side said: "Bundesliga club Bayer 04 Leverkusen will be without first team squad members Exequiel Palacios and Jonas Hofmann for the time being. Both players suffered injuries to their left hamstrings during Tuesday's 3-0 friendly victory against newly promoted Italian Serie A side, Pisa SC. "Brazilian player Arthur is also sidelined for the time being. The right-back injured his left ankle against Pisa and has not travelled for today's friendly match at Chelsea in London. New signing Malik Tillman also stayed at home. The US international is currently recovering from an injury in his left calf. Tillman is expected to return for the Bundesliga opener in two weeks' time at home to TSG Hoffenheim." Ahead of the match, Maresca spoke about starting pre-season so late and what he hopes to get out of the next two games. "I can see that the mood is different, or much better," Maresca said. "When you finish the season the way we finished – getting the top five, winning the Conference League and then the Club World Cup – I think it is going to give the players more energy, a boost But we need to see how we manage this kind of situation that is new for everyone. The focus was just to allow them to recover because we played 64 games, and they didn’t stop playing for more than a year in a row. "That is something that has never happened before, so the main focus was just to allow the players to recover. Then they came back here and now we try to do our best. We will see game by game." Story Saved You can find this story in My Bookmarks. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. Follow Football London Facebook X (Twitter) Comment More On Chelsea pre-season

Erik ten Hag's Bayer Leverkusen side take on Chelsea on Friday (Photo by Rene Nijhuis/MB Media/Getty Images)

Bayer Leverkusen will be without four players for their pre-season friendly against Chelsea on Friday evening.

The Blues welcome the Bundesliga side to Stamford Bridge in what is the west Londoners' first pre-season friendly of the season. Enzo Maresca and his players had a much longer 2024/25 campaign than usual due to their Club World Cup success, with the squad only returning to training at Cobham on Monday.

Chelsea play Bayer Leverkusen on Friday and then AC Milan on Sunday before the Premier League season gets under way next weekend. The Blues face Crystal Palace on Sunday, August 17 and Maresca will want to use the two pre-season friendlies to get as many minutes into his players' legs as possible.

Leverkusen have already played four friendlies this summer, winning three of them, so will be a tough challenge for Maresca's men. Erik ten Hag will be without four players for the clash in London, though, with Exequiel Palacios, Jonas Hofmann, Arthur and Malik Tillman not making the trip.

In a statement the German side said: "Bundesliga club Bayer 04 Leverkusen will be without first team squad members Exequiel Palacios and Jonas Hofmann for the time being. Both players suffered injuries to their left hamstrings during Tuesday's 3-0 friendly victory against newly promoted Italian Serie A side, Pisa SC.

"Brazilian player Arthur is also sidelined for the time being. The right-back injured his left ankle against Pisa and has not travelled for today's friendly match at Chelsea in London. New signing Malik Tillman also stayed at home. The US international is currently recovering from an injury in his left calf. Tillman is expected to return for the Bundesliga opener in two weeks' time at home to TSG Hoffenheim."

Ahead of the match, Maresca spoke about starting pre-season so late and what he hopes to get out of the next two games. "I can see that the mood is different, or much better," Maresca said.

"When you finish the season the way we finished – getting the top five, winning the Conference League and then the Club World Cup – I think it is going to give the players more energy, a boost But we need to see how we manage this kind of situation that is new for everyone. The focus was just to allow them to recover because we played 64 games, and they didn’t stop playing for more than a year in a row.

"That is something that has never happened before, so the main focus was just to allow the players to recover. Then they came back here and now we try to do our best. We will see game by game."