
In pleasant temperatures in front of 1,600 fans at the Leimbach Stadium – in stark contrast to the last match in the Rhineland – the Werkself played flowing football from the kick-off and quickly had their first goalscoring opportunities. A low drive from Karim Bellarabi on two minutes was kept out at the near post by the Siegen keeper Christoph Thiesus and the same striker tried his luck again three minutes later but this shot went just past the top corner of the net. Bayer 04, with skipper Lars Bender and Kai Havertz in central midfield, were successful down the flanks and produced a fine move for the opening goal: Wendell sent in a low cross behind the opposition defence and Lars Bender converted from 15 yards out on 14 minutes.
The visitors were also successful down the right: A whipped-in cross from Bellarabi was headed in by Lucas Alario just inside the post on 19 minutes – the prompt second goal from Leverkusen was soon followed by a third scored by Kevin Volland with the lively Bellarabi again laying on the assist on 27 minutes. The impression at the break given further good to very good chances for Bailey, Dragovic, Alario and Volland: The Werkself were clearly enjoying the game – even without Brandt, Jedvaj (both still on holiday after the World Cup), Aránguiz, Hradecky, Retsos, Pohjanpalo, Kohr (sidelined) and the latest member of the squad Paulinho.
Heiko Herrlich made five changes at half-time – and Siegen, who only had one attack before the break with a shot from Reo Suzuki hitting the side netting on 37 minutes, ventured into the Leverkusen half more often after the restart. Bayer 04 eased off in the second 45 and chances were missed by Leon Bailey who was kept out by the Siegen keeper after being put through by Sven Bender. The U19 player Ayman Azhil and Sam Schreck, plus Jan Boller and Adrian Stanilewicz later on (63'/73') saw four youngsters on the pitch. Alario (77'), Baumgartlinger (79') and Dragovic (82')all missed chances to increase the lead.
After a day off on Sunday, the Werkself have an open training session on Monday at 16.00 CET and another friendly on Tuesday (19.00 CET, Stadion am Zoo) at Regional League side Wuppertaler SV.
Bayer 04: Kirschbaum (Özcan 46') – Weiser (Stanilewicz 73'), Dragovic, Tah (S. Bender 46'), Wendell (Bednarczyk 46') – L. Bender (Baumgartlinger 46'), Havertz (73') – Bellarabi (Henrichs 46'), Volland (Azhil 63'), Bailey (Schreck 63') – Alario


Bayern Munich come to the BayArena this Saturday with an 11-point lead in the Bundesliga as they look to take a step closer to the title. As imperious as they may seem, a weakness has emerged of late that the Werkself proved they can exploit in Wednesday’s 1-1 draw with Arsenal in the Champions League. Leverkusen are also looking to make it four Bundesliga home games unbeaten against the Bavarians. Here’s all you need to know ahead of the 15:30 CET kick-off in our matchday news.
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Another home game, another top opponent - another marker? Three days after their convincing performance in the 1-1 draw with Arsenal in the UEFA Champions League round of 16 first leg, Bayer 04 continue their Bundesliga campaign with an equally high-calibre fixture. Matchday 26 sees league leaders Bayern Munich visit the sold-out BayArena. Ahead of the clash, head coach Kasper Hjulmand spoke about a comparison between Arsenal and the Bavarians, Bayern's high-scoring performance in Europe's premier club competition and a return to the squad for one Werkself player.
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High spirits and previously untold stories: Around 100 Bayer 04 fans packed the Schwadbud fan pub in the east stand of the BayArena on Thursday evening to be there in person for the first instalment of the new series of events entitled “Rudi lädt ein” (Rudi invites you). They listened intently as long-serving Werkself players Gonzalo Castro and Stefan Kießling chatted with record appearance-maker Rüdiger Vollborn and presenter and stadium announcer Tobias Ufer about their many years together at the club, shared amusing anecdotes and revealed dressing room secrets. Anyone who missed the premiere can already look forward to the second instalment – on 12 May, Rudi will be testing the expert knowledge of Bayer 04 fans during a quiz night.
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The Bundesliga home game against VfL Wolfsburg in the first half of the season was one of those classic ‘days to forget’ for Bayer 04 Women. It started with goalkeeper Charlotte Voll being shown a red card in the first minute of the game, and following a further sending-off, coach Roberto Pätzold's 9-women side ended up losing 5-1 to last season's runners-up. At 18.30 CET on Sunday, they'll have the chance to exact revenge at the AOK Stadium - and pick up valuable points in the race for third place.
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They're well on their way to becoming German champions for the 35th time and once again proved their incredible class in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday. This Saturday, 14 March (kick-off: 15.30 CET), Bayern Munich will be the visitors to the BayArena. It'll be a meeting of the two Bundesliga teams with the most dominant styles of play. A look at our opponents shows the visitors from the Bavarian capital have many strengths - but are also vulnerable.
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