Talking about his time at Leverkusen, the coach said: "It was a very exciting, very intense time" and he added: "In the opening phase we didn't manage to turn performances into points. And then we came into a difficult situation at a club not used to that situation with such young players. But in the last two weeks we have succeeded in completely focusing our minds. We could have won both games."
Korkut is now looking to clock up a victory in his last game with Bayer 04 in Berlin. For Hertha it is all about qualifying for Europe: The Berlin team could slip down to seventh place, which would be enough to qualify for the Europa League if Borussia Dortmund beat Eintracht Frankfurt in the DFB Cup final.
Bayer 04 will definitely be without Kevin Volland (hamstring) for the game against Hertha. There is still a question mark over Ömer Toprak making appearance. Korkut: "I'll have to see how Ömer is. He's only trained on his own up to now and he hasn't taken part in full training."
All in red to Berlin
The #finallyRED campaign continues in Berlin. There is a tradition that all the Werkself fans show their support for Bayer 04 on the final matchday is of the season by wearing red. The Werkself will have the backing of some 1,900 fans in Berlin. Korkut: "The support against Köln was outstanding. We'd be glad to see that again. We want to celebrate a victory with the fans to round it off."
Bayer 04 Leverkusen have extended midfielder Noah Mbamba’s contract by twelve months and sent the Belgian U21 international on loan to France. At FC Lorient, the 21-year-old – whose contract at Leverkusen now runs to 30 June 2029 – is set to gain playing time in Ligue 1 and, through strong performances and further development, put himself in the running for a future place in the Werkself squad.
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Spurred on by a flawless hat-trick from Cornelia Kramer, the Bayer 04 women’s team won their penultimate pre-season friendly in commanding fashion. As part of the season launch, the Werkself beat Dutch top-flight side Feyenoord 7–0. In front of 3,000 spectators at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium, Kramer (6’, 25’, 45’), Sofie Zdebel (47’), Maja Sternad (59'), Natasha Kowalski (83') and Vanessa Fudalla (86') scored the goals for coach Roberto Pätzold’s side.
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The Shareholders’ Committee of Bayer 04 Leverkusen Fußball GmbH has extended the contracts of the two managing directors, Fernando Carro and Simon Rolfes, ahead of schedule. The CEO, Fernando Carro (62), will continue in his role until 30 June 2029, and managing director sport Simon Rolfes (44) will remain in post until 30 June 2031.
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There’s plenty for Bayer 04 fans to enjoy both on and off the pitch at the official 2026 season launch. In addition to the women’s team taking on Feyenoord at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium at 13:15 CEST and the men’s team facing Sevilla at the BayArena at 15:30 CEST, fans of all ages can enjoy a range of activities – and get to meet Bayer 04 players and former players in the process. The Fanwelt is also offering a special promotion: buy a new shirt and get free printing! Here’s an overview of everything you need to know about the season launch, including the live streams.
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