The good mood amongst the Royal Blues after a successful start to the season has recently wilted somewhat. The reason for that are the two defeats against Bayern Munich (0-3) and away to TSG 1899 Hoffenheim (0-2). The team coached by Dominico Tedesco have only picked up three points out of the last three games (2-1 against Werder Bremen), which represents a poor return given the high expectations at Schalke. However, three wins in the first four league matches puts the team in seventh place as it stands. If the Royal Blues failed to get a result against the Werkself then they may lose contact with the leading group – otherwise fifth place is a possibility.
In his second year as general manager, Christian Heidel has continued to make huge changes to the FC Schalke squad: 15 players were sold, loaned out or released in the last transfer window – including the long-standing captain Benedikt Höwedes. The club spent around 40 million euros on new signings. Of those, only the 21-year-old Frenchman Amine Harit Has made an impression with three assists in the total of seven league goals for Schalke. Permanent signing Nabil Bentaleb (22) and Yevhen Konoplyanka (27) have not proved to be durable partners in attack for key player Leon Goretzka. However, Bentaleb is currently the most successful goalscorer for the Royal Blues with two goals so far. In contrast, the Spaniard Coke is not enjoying much luck: Schalke announced on Tuesday that the 30-year-old is sidelined again, this time with a knee injury that threatens to keep him out for several weeks.
The aim for coach Domenico Tedesco, who arrived in the summer, is to improve on last season's tenth-place finish and return Schalke to the European stage – and the club have backed that up with the necessary funds. The minimum target is a Europa League finish but ideally it would be qualification for the Champions League. That is still the hope amongst the Royal Blues despite all the changes in the squad. On paper, the team from Gelsenkirchen are certainly capable of it. The question is how long will it take for the 32-year-old coach to mould his team. Schalke have shown signs of that quality in the first six matches as was shown in the opening game this season in the 2-0 victory over Bundesliga runners-up RB Leipzig.
At the same time, the first six Bundesliga fixtures clearly showed the same deficits in terms of stability and confidence as under the former coach Markus Weinzierl. The team had weak phases in the matches at Werder Bremen and against newcomers VfB Stuttgart, which would probably have been ruthlessly exploited by stronger opponents. The desire to get onto the front foot again is clearly evident under Tedesco – but that has proved costly in defence with a goals conceded to date.
The recent defeat against Hoffenheim tends to cloud the good start although Schalke have been unlucky in terms of finishing at times. That has been seen as encouraging. In addition, the atmosphere in Gelsenkirchen is fairly relaxed in spite of the last two setbacks. According to the motto: Change requires patience. The Schalke club management know there is enough quality in the squad to achieve a European finish. That means they also need to be able to get results in games against direct rivals for a European spot – as in Friday's game against the Werkself.
With 22 days to go until the start of the Bundesliga campaign, the Bayer 04 Women’s team have gained a fresh boost of confidence. In a friendly against Belgian top-flight side KRC Genk on Saturday afternoon, coach Roberto Pätzold’s team secured a 1–0 win. Lobke Loonen (20’) scored the winner for the Black and Reds at the Kurtekotten training centre.
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A successful fourth preseason friendly ahead of the start of the training camp: The Werkself secured a 3-0 victory over Rot-Weiss Essen at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium. The goals in what was a commanding and dominant performance by Leverkusen from the outset were scored by Ibrahim Maza (8'), Patrik Schick from the penalty spot (23’) and, in the second half, Montrell Culbreath with a header (79’). The team set off for their training camp in Blankenhain in the Weimarer Land region after the game.
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Rüdiger Vollborn has been at the club for 40 years, he holds the record number of Bundesliga appearances for the club (401) and is the only Bayer 04 player to have won both the UEFA Cup (1988) and the DFB Pokal (1993). And the Berliner stayed with the Werkself after ending his impressive playing career as he worked as a goalkeeping coach for the following nine years. Vollborn now works under the Bayer Cross as a fan liaison officer and club archivist. Since February 2021, the personal Black and Red lexicon takes Werkself fans under the heading of 'Rudi recounts...' on a brief trip through the history of Bayer 04 every month…
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You have voted – your ‘Team of the Quarter-Century’ has been decided! This historic selection, covering the period from 1 January 2000 to 31 December 2024, features honorary captains, Bundesliga champions, double winners and Champions League finalists. Edmond Tapsoba is the only player from the current Bayer 04 squad to make it into the starting XI, while his team-mate Patrik Schick is on the bench. Simon Rolfes, the current managing director sport, is also in the lie-up. A truly special team that brings together a quarter of a century of Bayer 04 history – and has left a decisive mark on the club.
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Following Patrik Schick, Mark Flekken, Ibrahim Maza and Kerim Alajbegovic earlier this week, the next World Cup participant is back on the training ground in Leverkusen: On Thursday 30 July, Malik Tillman rejoined the squad, completing his first training session under head coach Carles Martínez.
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