Peter Bosz was in the Werkself dugout from December 2018 to March of this year. In his second season under the Bayer Cross, the Dutchman led the Werkself to the DFB Cup final and the quarter-final stage of the Europa League. The Black and Reds finished fifth in the Bundesliga. The 58-year-old coach is now at Lyon.
The 39-year-old coach came to Leverkusen in March from the German Football Association (DFB) where he was in charge of the Germany U18s. As the successor to Peter Bosz, Hannes Wolf had the support of experienced assistant coach Peter Hermann. The coaching duo secured sixth place in the Bundesliga for the Werkself in 2020/21 that met the target of qualification for Europe. Wolf returned to the DFB to take charge of the U19s after his time at Leverkusen.
Bayer 04 homegrown player Kai Havertz achieved something at the end of May that most football players are unable to throughout their careers: scoring the winning goal in a Champions League final. The 22-year-old scored the only goal of the game on 43 minutes for Chelsea against Premier League rivals Manchester City to secure the Champions League title for the London club. The former Leverkusen top talent is also the first German goalscorer in a Champions League final since Ilkay Gündogan in 2013.
The youngster joined Leverkusen in 2010 and he moved up to the Werkself senior squad six years later. He scored 46 goals for the Black and Reds. He also received the call-up to the Germany side. Havertz signed for Chelsea in the summer of 2020. Bayer 04 sporting director Simon Rolfes was impressed: “We’re completely happy for him and proud he has made this move.”
Lars and Sven Bender ended their impressive playing careers in May and made their farewells to the Werkself supporters at the Bay Arena in May. Lars Bender played for the Black and Reds from 2009 and became the Werkself captain in 2015. His twin brother Sven Bender joined Leverkusen from Borussia Dortmund in the summer of 2017 and he was an important leader alongside his brother on and off the pitch. Bayer 04 say thank you for your commitment.
The Bayer 04 players prepared for the current season in the summer at the training camp in Zell am See-Kaprun. Lukas Hradecky and Co. worked hard for a week against an Alpine backdrop. It was also a lot fun…
Gerardo Seoane took over the helm at the Werkself for the 2021/22 season. After playing 227 top-flight games in Switzerland he ended his career in 2010 at FC Luzern and then he became the youth coach at his hometown club. The 43-year-old coach took charge of the top team Young Boys Bern in 2018 after years at Luzern and he went on to win three league titles in succession. Seoane's role at the Werkself is his first coaching job outside Switzerland. His record with the Black and Reds to date: He has been unbeaten18 times in the 25 games in all competitions to date.
2021 was a successful year for Werkself players on the international stage: Paulinho won the Olympic Games final in Tokio in the summer with Brazil, Exequiel Palacios won the Copa America with Argentina, and Moussa Diaby was a winner with France in the Nations League on October.
Fans were finally allowed to return to the Bay Arena in August after an eighteen-month absence due to the coronavirus pandemic. In the game against Borussia Mönchengladbach 15,105 Black and Red supporters watched the Werkself clock up an impressive 4-0 win.
Following the flood disaster in the summer in and around Leverkusen the Werkself played a charity match against a Leverkusen city eleven on 10 November in front of a crowd of 2,104 at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium. The 8-1 scoreline against the team coached by Peter Hermann, consisting of 33 players from 12 Leverkusen clubs, was of secondary importance.
The ticket sales plus the money raised from a fan flea market enabled the Bayer 04 management along with the partner Tipwin to present a cheque for €100,000 to the Leverkusen Community Foundation after the game. The money was used to support a large number of clubs and community organisations who suffered during the floods in July.
The away game at the start of November at Hertha Berlin (1-1) saw the youngsters Zidan Sertdemir (16 years and 276 days) and Iker Bravo (16 years and 298 days) make their debuts for the first team. Iker Bravo came off the bench on 79 minutes at the age of 16 years, 9 months and 25 days and he was the second youngest player in the history of the Bundesliga after Borussia Dortmund’s Youssoufa Moukoko (16 years and 1 day on debut) for seven minutes. With 86 minutes on the clock, head coach Gerardo Seoane then brought on Zidan Sertdemir who was 22 days younger than his teammate Bravo.
The Seoane team won Group G in the Europa League with a game to play thanks to a 3-2 home win against Celtic at the end of November. After Bayer 04 went behind, Robert Andrich and Moussa Diaby struck twice in the final eight minutes and they succeeded in getting the BayArena crowd off their seats with the double whammy. A spectacular finish.
In the Bundesliga match against SpVgg Greuther Fürth at the start of December, the Werkself not only secured the biggest home win in their Bundesliga history with 7-1 scoreline. Striker Patrik Schick set another record against the newly promoted club: The Czech Republic international scored four times and he is the only Bayer 04 player to find the back of the net four times in a Bundesliga fixture. After the match, he compared his flood of goals to a ketchup bottle: “I didn’t have a real chance in the first half and I didn’t even have a shot on goal but in the second half it was .like opening a bottle of ketchup. You open it, nothing happens and then it all comes pouring out at once.” A fine comparison.
An eventful year ends for Florian Wirtz: The youngster won the European Championships with the Germany U21 side in the summer and that was followed by his debut for Germany. At the age of 18 years, 3 months and 30 days, he replaced Kai Havertz (19 years, 2 months, 29 days) as the youngest Bayer 04 debutant for Germany. Wirtz‘ latest record: His appearance in the 2-2 draw against TSG Hoffenheim in the middle of December made the 18-year-old the youngest player to make 50 Bundesliga appearances. And that’s definitely just the beginning…
Rudi Völler has announced his intention to retire as sporting managing director at the end of the season. His successor, as announced by Bayer 04 in December, will be a familiar face: The 1990 World Cup winner is succeeded by Werkself legend and sporting director Simon Rolfes. Völler will continue with the Black and Reds with his duties including the role of club ambassador.
The Nerazzurri are in town: Today, Tuesday 10 December, Bayer 04 entertain the reigning champions of Italy Inter Milan on Matchday 6 in the UEFA Champions League (kick-off: 21.00 CET/live on DAZN and on Werkself Radio). Read on for the latest information on the home game at the BayArena.
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The Bayer 04 U19 team lost 1-0 to Inter Milan on the sixth and final matchday in the league phase of the UEFA Youth League 2024/25. The only goal of the game was scored just after the hour mark. While the side from North Italy have finished top in the league phase with a maximum points return, the Leverkusen team appeared to have just missed out on the knockout stages of the European competition. There is faint hope looking to several games to follow where results are needed to go the way of the Werkself.
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Italian teams are known for being strong in defence. The fact that Inter Milan, the next opponents for the Werkself in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, 10 December (kick-off: 20.45 CET), have not conceded a single goal in their last five matches is impressive. Will the visitors' keeper Yann Sommer be able to keep a clean sheet at the BayArena against Florian Wirtz and Co.? The lowdown on our next opponents.
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The Werkself are away to Borussia Dortmund on Bundesliga Matchday 16. The game at the Signal Iduna Park on Friday, 10 January 2025, kicks off at 20.30 CET. Read on for information on ticket sales.
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