It was a strike that has no equal: 20 minutes into the home clash with Leipzig, Kerem Demirbay shot from 25 yards out and put the ball in the back of the RB net via the underside of the bar. According to the stats from xGoals, which calculates the probability of scoring based on eight criteria, the chance of netting this goal was just 2.23 per cent.
And it is logical that the long-range effort from the Werkself number 10 has been nominated for the September Goal of the Month on the ARD-Sportschau. The 27-year-old has the final digit 2. Votes can be cast for the Leverkusen midfielder via phone (0040 (0)1371/36900 – 2) or online at sportschau.de. The closing date for entries is Saturday, 17 October, 19.00 CEST.
The Day of German Unity on 3 October was a special public holiday in 2020 – as it was the 30th anniversary of reunification. Bayer 04 dedicated a thematic week to this turning point in German-German history. Based on this series at bayer04.de it is clear: The fall of the Berlin Wall was a lucky break for the Werkself. Click HERE to access the articles.
Positive numbers for the Bundesliga: The ARD-Sportschau had 4.44 million viewers on Saturday night (market share: 18.7 per cent) the best numbers since the beginning of March. The highlights of the 1-1 draw for the Werkself at VfB Stuttgart was available in the afternoon.
And the Pay TV broadcaster Sky can also look back at good figures at the weekend. The individual and multi-match coverage from Saturday afternoon reached an average TV audience of 1.71 million fans. The Aktuelle Sportstudio, that was broacast on ZDF on Saturday night at eleven o’clock, had 1.86 million viewers (market share: 12.3 per cent).
A great day for ‘Pala’: The Argentinian Bayer 04 player Exequiel Palacios celebrates his 22nd birthday on his day off on Monday. The midfielder signed for Leverkusen from River Plate at the start of January this year. Since then, the Copa Libertadores winner of 2018 has made eight appearances for the Werkself.
And the former Leverkusen player Robbie Kruse is also a year older on this Monday. The 32-year-old, with the Werkself from 2013 to 2015 and from the start of 2016 to the start of 2017, is now playing football back home in Australia – since the summer of last year for Melbourne Victory. Bayer 04 wish both: Happy Birthday!
The FIFA World Cup 2026 in the USA, Canada and Mexico is underway. A total of eight Leverkusen players are taking part in the 23rd World Cup, with 48 teams in the tournament for the first time. Bayer04.de brings you all the latest from Werkself players at the World Cup.
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Following the summer break of around two months, the Bayer 04 first team squad took to the training pitches at the BayArena for the first time on Tuesday – and the players were in high spirits. Alongside the newly formed coaching team led by head coach Carles Martínez, new signing Afonso Moreira also completed his first session with the squad. In front of several hundred Bayer 04 fans at the open session, numerous Werkself players worked up a good sweat. The Leverkusen players who took part in the World Cup will join pre-season training at a later date.
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In mid-August, the Werkself will set off on a four-day trip to England to play their final two friendly matches of the 2026/27 pre-season against Premier League clubs Nottingham Forest and Newcastle United. The match in Nottingham against the Tricky Trees is on Wednesday 12 August at 20:45 CEST (19:45 BST) at the City Ground. The game against the Magpies in Newcastle is on Saturday 15 August at 16:00 CEST (15:00 BST) at the atmospheric St James’ Park. Details on ticket sales for both matches.
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Black and Red talent development at the highest level – even off the pitch: Apprentices Jule Suermann, Leandra Bellia and Julia Niederheide have successfully completed their two- or three-year apprenticeships at the club. Bayer 04 honoured the trio at the BayArena on Tuesday.
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