"The team didn't just produce a brilliant tactical performance with a man down at Stuttgart. The spirit, the mentality – we have positive memories of that game," said Gerardo Seoane looking back at the 3-1 win at VfB. The Werkself played with ten men for an hour in last Sunday's match after Robert Andrich was sent off.
It was an energy-sapping and intensive clash for Bayer 04 at Stuttgart. However, in contrast to the next few weeks, there was no game in the Europa League or the DFB Cup so Patrik Schick and Co. were able to recover in their own time. That means Seoane has all the players available from the squad for the Stuttgart game with the exception of the suspended Andrich.
Edmond Tapsoba, who has been back on the training ground for the past few days, is still sidelined along with Julian Baumgartlinger, Timothy Fosu-Mensah, Exequiel Palacios and goalkeeper Niklas Lomb.
The biggest plus for the visitors from Mainz this season is their strength in defence: The team under head coach Bo Svensson have only conceded two goals – the least in the league along with VfL Wolfsburg. It is clear given the stats that a considered approach will be required to get on the scoreboard. Seoane: "We face the challenge of finding solutions to their compact defending to be able to create good chances. It's down to us from the start to produce high intensity and use the width of the pitch to pull their defence apart."
A look at the table, with Mainz 05 level on points with the Werkself in fifth place, is only a "snapshot" for the Swiss boss. More significant are the impressive performances by the next opponents – and that already started at the start of the second half of last term (fifth place in the second half of the season table).
There is no doubt that Lukas Hradecky and Co. face a tricky game against Mainz but they can again count on the support of 15,000 fans. There will be 455 away fans from Mainz. There are still a few remaining tickets for Bayer 04 fans making a late decision to attend the game.
Match information:
Broadcasters: Sky and Werkself Radio
Referee: The match officials will be announced on the day of the game
Bayer 04 Leverkusen have appointed Carles Martínez Novell as the new head coach. The 42-year-old Spaniard worked for FC Toulouse in the French Ligue 1 until the end of the season. Martínez finished last term in ninth place with the club from the south of France. He will take over the Werkself on 1 July 2026 and has signed a contract to 30 June 2028. Martínez, whose contract with Toulouse expires at the end of the month, succeeds Kasper Hjulmand at Leverkusen, who is leaving the club after one season.
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Welcome to Leverkusen, Carles Martínez Novell. Bayer 04 have appointed the 42-year-old Spaniard as the new head coach on a contract to 2028. Martínez most recently worked for FC Toulouse in the French Ligue 1 until the end of the season. He previously spent four years at Barcelona's legendary academy La Masia in his home city. Bayer04.de introduces Martínez in more detail.
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Bayer 04 plans for the 2026/27 pre-season continue to take shape. The Werkself will kick off the new season in mid-July with the return to the training ground. The highlight will be the official season opener on 8 August at the BayArena, including a friendly against La Liga club Sevilla. Friendlies in Germany will take the team to neighbouring Monheim, Offenbach and Jena.
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Strengthening the Bayer 04 Leverkusen youth teams: Konstantinos Kotsifakis will join the Werkself from Bundesliga 2 club Hertha Berlin for the 2026/27 season, where he will be a permanent member of the Leverkusen U19 coaching set-up. The German-Greek will also take on an operational role in coaching the Bayer 04 Future Team. The 29-year-old was most recently head coach of the U17s at Hertha Berlin.
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Another award for the Bayer 04 head groundsman and staff: After coming top in the 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2024/25 seasons, the BayArena pitch came second in the Bundesliga Pitch of the Year ranking for the 2025/26 season. VfL Wolfsburg secured the top spot this year, with TSG Hoffenheim in third place.
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