"You could see Würzburg were the fitter team. But we didn't take account of this match during the last few days of intensive training," said Herrlich. Once again he had to do without the Confed Cup participants (Bernd Leno, Julian Brandt, Benjamin Henrichs, Chicharito, Charles Aránguiz) and the U21 European champion (Dominik Kohr) for the friendly in Hollenbach in Baden-Württemberg.
Herrlich calls for more commitment
The exertions of the past ten days on the training ground were particularly evident in the second half. The opposite was true for the opponents from Würzburg who were at their end of the pre-season with just eight days to go before the start of the third division campaign. In spite of the difference in terms of training the new Bayer 04 coach did not seek to defend the performance of his team against a physically strong Würzburg side: "From a team like Bayer Leverkusen you can expect them to put up more of a fight. In my opinion we were too passive on the pitch."
The Werkself did make a decent start to the game organised by joint kit suppliers JAKO and they went on to create lots of chances in the first half. Against the run of play, Herrlich's team went 1-0 down on 23 minutes to a goal from Björn Jopek. The Werkself remained undeterred. Driven on by the energetic Kai Havertz and Joel Pohjanpalo, Bayer 04 had the better of Würzburg up to half-time but were unfortunate not to convert any of the chances created. Bayer 04 went into half-time 1-0 down.
Würzburg build on good start
Herrlich made three changes at half-time bringing on keeper Niklas Lomb, Stefan Kießling and Leon Bailey. Würzburg built on their solid start in the second 45 minutes and they gradually wrested control of proceedings with Marco Königs doubling the score on 54 minutes. Dominic Baumann then extended the lead to 3-0 with a goal from a free kick.
Herrlich made another four changes in the closing stages. The Kickers continued to control the game they focused on playing on the break. The Werkself did create more chances but were unable to overcome Würzburg on the night.
The Werkself will complete a recovery training session on Saturday morning with new signing Sven Bender joining in for the first time. The next friendly is on Wednesday (18.30 CET). The third pre-season fixture sees the Werkself play Regional League side Bonner FC at the Sport Park Nord in Bonn. Tickets are available now for 13 euros and 10 euros for concessions.
Bayer 04: Özcan (Lomb 46’) – Bednarczyk (Frey 72’), Ramalho, Dragovic, Wendell (Abu Hanna 63’) – Yurchenko (Bailey 46’), Baumgartlinger – Havertz (Akkaynak 72’), Bellarabi (Schreck 63’) – Pohjanpalo, Volland (Kießling 46).
New signing Miguel Gutiérrez arrives in Leverkusen having won the Champions League, the Spanish league title and an Olympic gold medal. However, the 25-year-old Spaniard, signed from Napoli, is looking to the future – he wants to write the next chapter of success with the Werkself. Bayer04.de takes a closer look at the skilful, attack-minded left-back, who will wear the number 3 jersey.
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The Werkself's training camp in Weimarer Land all in one place: in our daily blog you'll find all the insights and updates from the day. Day three (Tuesday 4 August) begins with a thorough open session on the pitch. After lunch, some players have media engagements at the team hotel, and then the team come together for a barbecue in the evening.
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Nine matches against teams from nine countries, two penalty shoot-outs won, and encounters that went far beyond football: As with last year, the Inklusionswerkself enjoyed an extraordinary week at the Genuine Cup 2026 in Houston, USA, and made memories that will last a lifetime. This year, the Leverkusen side took part as Germany’s official representatives and, accordingly, took to the pitch in Germany kit. Together with 53 teams from 53 nations, the Black and Reds once again sent a powerful message of inclusion and participation – and also impressed on the pitch by winning their group.
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The Werkself training camp in the Weimarer Land all in one place: in our daily blog, you’ll find all the insights and updates from the day. The programme for day two (Monday, 3 August) centres on two training sessions – one in the morning (open to the public) and one in the early evening (behind closed doors) – at the nearby training grounds. In the afternoon, fans can look forward to a big fan meet-up with club legend Paulo Sergio at Schloss Blankenhain.
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