"That makes it almost impossible,” said Patrick Vieira last Thursday after his team lost 3-1 to Slavia Prague. Nevertheless: only “almost”. To go through to the Round of 32 in the Europa League, his team have to make up six points on the Werkself in the remaining two games – and also at least equal the 6-2 scoreline in the first meeting, that means winning 4-0 or 5-1 on Thursday. As the first game against Slavia Prague ended in a 3-2 defeat so did the head-to-head with the Czechs; the only points gained so far in the group stage came from a 1-0 win against Hapoel Be’er Sheva.
Nice have also failed to fire on all cylinders in Ligue 1 since the game at the BayArena. Back then, Nice were fourth in the French top-flight but they slipped eleventh at the weekend – after a 3-1 home defeat at bottom-placed Dijon. “We’re in a difficult phase,” admitted Vieira at the post-match press conference. “We have to stick together and work even harder to turn it round.”
One definite reason for the current poor form of the French side: the serious injury to their captain and key defender Dante. The former Bundesliga player suffered a torn cruciate in a 3-0 win against Angers at the start of November and faces several months on the sidelines. After the shock injury, Nice have lost all four games with the defence conceding eleven goals without their leader. The team has also been hit hard by coronavirus: A number of players tested positive in the middle of November and the league match against Olympique Marseille had to be postponed. The majority of the players affected are now back in the squad.
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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