It won't be an easy game for Leverkusen: The record champions from Bavaria are riding a wave of success since the change of coaches from Niko Kovac to Hansi Flick: The men from Munich have won all of their last four games under the new coach – with a goal difference of 16 to 0. "They have a lot of momentum at the moment," said Bayer 04 coach Peter Bosz at the pre-match press conference before adding: "That makes the game very interesting for us. We want to get a result in Munich and I think that's possible." To achieve that, his players have to perform as a team and each individual "produce his best level".
Bosz will not be able to call on long-term absentees Mitchell Weiser and Joel Pohjanpalo and it remains to be seen whether Daley Sinkgraven and Kai Havertz will be in the squad. Both took part in full training on Thursday. "We'll see today how they've dealt with yesterday’s session and what happens in the final pre-match training. Then we'll decide who we take to Munich," said the Werkself coach.
One key question ahead of the game: Who can stop Bayern's in-form striker Robert Lewandowski? Bayer 04 defender Sven Bender knows how the Poland international plays from their time together at Borussia Dortmund (2010 – 14). Tomorrow's opponents played together for four seasons at BVB. "It could be an advantage as he knows Lewandowski very well. Of course, he's carried on developing since then. But he's not a completely new player," said Bosz who is looking to stop the Bayern central striker "as a team".
During the press conference, the Werkself coach spoke about possible transfers. According to reports in the media, the Argentinian Exequiel Palacios is set to be a new signing for the Werkself. Bosz: "It's almost December and this subject starts again. It's the first question of that type I've been asked and in the coming months there will be lots of questions about lots of players. I can only say: Good players are always welcome here."
BIOGENA is the new performance partner for the Bayer 04 Leverkusen Women’s team. Under a partnership initially set to run for three years, the club and the leading Austrian micronutrient company are pooling their expertise in the areas of health, fitness and top-level performance.
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100 children from the Bayer 04 Football Academy had the chance to gain exclusive insights: As part of the summer camp, the young footballers headed inside the BayArena at midday on Tuesday, 21 July, where they were due to meet Werkself keepers Janis Blaswich and Simeon Rapsch in the press conference room. The two players took plenty of time to answer every question from the inquisitive audience – whether it was about their own careers or their first impressions of the new head coach. Finally, there was even time left to sign autographs for the young fans.
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Alejo Sarco has left Bayer 04 Leverkusen to join Sporting Gijón in Spain’s second division. Bayer 04 have secured a buy-back clause for the 20-year-old Argentine striker, who spent the second half of last season on loan at Borussia Mönchengladbach.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen have signed 16-year-old midfield prospect Gabriel Minutillo on a long-term contract. The Germany youth international will play for the U19s this season.
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