Our next opponents are often referred to as the Foals. Gladbach earned the nickname during the glory years in the 1970s because of the young average age of their team. It is no secret that Bayer 04 also place great emphasis on youth. In last weekend's 2-2 draw with VFL Wolfsburg the average age of the starting eleven was just 23 years and 339 days – RB Leipzig are the only team to have had a younger line-up this season. And: The average age was further reduced during the game with the introduction of Kai Havertz (18) and Joel Pohjanpalo (23) from the subs bench.
Bayer 04 are five points behind the rivals from the Rhine. That makes Borussia the favourites on Saturday. The record between the two clubs reveals Bayer 04 are on top: In the previous 70 meetings in Germany's top-flight the Werkself have won 25 times and the Foals 19. The most common outcome (26 times) in this fixture is the two sides sharing the points. The Werkself have only recorded more draws with Werder Bremen (29).
The Werkself have scored in all of the last 13 Bundesliga matches. That's the longest run of goals for any current Bundesliga team. Extending this run of goals would undoubtedly increase the chances of getting a result on the Lower Rhine following on from the draw at Schalke. Bayer 04 clocked up more games in succession with goals scored between February and September 2016 (15 matches).
The Werkself have shown in recent games that they can play football – Heiko Herrlich's team have celebrated scoring 15 times in the Bundesliga this season. Only Borussia Dortmund and FC Bayern have netted more often this term. The Werkself stand a good chance of extending that total in Mönchengladbach. Bayer 04 have scored at least one goal in 23 of the last 24 Bundesliga fixtures against Borussia with the last blank coming in a 3-0 away defeat in May 2015. Moreover: With a total of 130 goals, the Werkself have not scored more often in the Bundesliga than against Gladbach.
In the 2-2 draw against Wolfsburg, Julian Baumgartlinger came on in place of Bayer 04 captain Lars Bender on 70 minutes and now he is on the verge of making his 150th Bundesliga appearance. Since signing in the summer of last year, the 29-year-old has played 25 games for the Werkself. Most of his appearances (124) came during his time at Mainz 05.
Midfielder Christoph Kramer and the currently injured striker Josip Drmic are two players in the Gladbach squad who used to play for the Werkself. Heiko Herrlich also spent time at our next opponents. The current head coach at Bayer 04 moved from Leverkusen to Mönchengladbach in 1993 and in the 1994/95 season he was the league's highest scorer (along with Mario Basler) with 20 goals to his credit and he later went on to win the DFB Cup. The striker played for Borussia for two years scoring 28 goals in 55 Bundesliga appearances. As a coach, Herrlich meets up with his former club for a second time: The first meeting was in January 2010 with VfL Bochum in a Bundesliga fixture at Gladbach that ended in a 2-1 victory for his team. It would be good if the next win comes on Saturday - It would be the first victory on the road for Bayer 04 this season.
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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