Head coach Xabi Alonso made three changes to the team that started in the 2-1 win in the opening friendly at Rot-Weiss Essen. Matej Kovar started in goal in place of Lukas Hradecky, while Robert Andrich and Granit Xhaka replaced Arthur and Jonas Hofmann in the starting line-up.
At a sold-out Stade Bollaert-Delelis, where three of the four stands were open in the lower standing tiers, the Werkself started brightly and were rewarded after just six minutes. Amine Adli won the ball high up, Victor Boniface seized on it and rounded Lens' goalkeeper, and although the striker's finish was cleared off the line, the ball fell to new signing Martin Terrier who netted his first goal in a Bayer 04 shirt.
With a 1-0 lead, the German double winners acted with caution and regularly got forward without creating notable goalscoring opportunities. It was the same at the other end as it looked like the visitors would go in at the break with a slender advantage - but Lens struck on the stroke of half-time. Jhoanner Chavez delivered a cross from the left to the head of Wesley Said, who nodded in the equaliser.
Alonso introduced Hradecky, Jonathan Tah, Piero Hincapie, Hofmann and Florian Wirtz for the second half, and the latter was in the heart of the action straight away. After a long ball from Aleix Garcia, the 21-year-old sized up and made it 2-1 to the Werkself with a first-time finish into the far corner. Five minutes later, Hradecky had to turn away a long-range strike from Florian Sotoca. After that the game died down a bit with several substitutions being made, including youngsters Andrea Natali and Ben Hawighorst. But then Lens' Jonathan Gradit had a go from distance in the 84th minute - and scored from virtually nowhere into the corner to make the final score 2-2.
Bayer 04 have two more friendlies against first-class opponents this week. On Wednesday 7 August (kick-off 19:00 CEST), the Werkself visit Arsenal in London. Three days later, Real Betis are the visitors to the BayArena as part of the official season-opening event on Saturday 10 August (15:30 CEST). That's the final friendly before the competitive business begins.
Match stats:
RC Lens starting XI: Samba - Medina, Gradit, Khusanov - Aguilar, Thomasson, Mendy, Fulgini, Chavez - Said, Sotoca
Bayer 04: Kovar (Hradecky 46') - Kossounou (Natali 69'), Andrich (Tah 46'), Tapsoba (Hincapie 46') - Tella (Arthur 60'), Garcia (Puerta 77'), Xhaka (Hofmann 46'), Belocian (Hawighorst 77') - Adli (Hlozek 60'), Terrier (Wirtz 46') - Boniface (Schick 60')
Goals: 0-1 Terrier (6'), 1-1 Said (45'), 1-2 Wirtz (51'), 2-2 Gradit (84')
Yellow cards: Medina, Sotoca / Boniface, Hincapie
Referee: Marc Bollengier
Attendance: 38,223 (sellout) at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis
A thrilling final but with no reward: the Bayer 04 U19s lost 5-4 to 1. FC Köln in the final for the German championship. Sergi Runge's side went into a commanding lead through goals by Artem Stepanov and Jeremiah Mensah, but the visitors battled back and turned it into a 4-2 lead before half-time. Leverkusen then showed their own comeback qualities in the second period, with Francis Onyeka and Kerim Alajbegovic restoring partiy, but Luis Stapelmann snatched the winner for Köln late on.
Show moreThey had their hands full in the VAR centre in Cologne: eight goals were scored at the MEWA Arena on Saturday afternoon, but only four of them were allowed in the end as the Werkself and 1. FSV Mainz 05 closed the season with a 2-2 draw. It means Bayer 04 end the 2024/25 campaign as runners-up with 69 points, representing the fourth-best season in the club's history. What's more, the Werkself are now unbeaten away from home in two whole Bundesliga seasons, with their last away defeat coming exactly two years ago on Matchday 34 of the 2022/23 season at VfL Bochum. The Black-and-Reds can continue the record run next season - albeit without Alonso and Tah. Read what else the eventful final game for the head coach and the defensive leader had to offer in the Werkself Review.
Show moreWerkself-TV shows the highlights of Bayer 04's 2-2 draw at Mainz 05 on the 34th matchday of the Bundesliga 2024/25...
Show moreBayer 04’s final game of the 2024/25 Bundesliga season saw VAR drama and produced a new record for away results with a 2-2 draw in Mainz. The hosts had several goals ruled out before Paul Nebel put them ahead. Patrik Schick’s brace then turned things around in the second half before Jonathan Burkardt’s penalty levelled the game again. It means Leverkusen have now gone 34 away games without defeat in the Bundesliga, which no team has ever done before.
Show moreThe Werkself bring down the curtain on their 2024/25 Bundesliga campaign with a game away at Mainz on Saturday (kick-off: 3.30pm CEST). Here’s all you need to know ahead of the Matchday 34 meeting at the MEWA Arena.
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