Aleksandar Dragovic has played for Bayer 04 for the last five years and proved loyal to the Werkself defence throughout that time. Sometimes in central defence, sometimes at right-back or even as a holding midfielder – ‘Drago’ has been a team player whenever he was needed. “Being a striker is still missing,” joked the Austrian when asked about his versatility before modestly adding: “I try to do my best for the club in every position and I’m the sort of person who always puts the success of the team first.”
That goes down well with the fans. And it’s no surprise that Dragovic gained great popularity with Werkself supporters over the years. His relaxed manner, his humour and the fact he has a waggish sense of humour – it all went down well with the North Stand. A song has been dedicated to him. To the melody of the 80’s classic ‘Sauerland’ by the Zoff group, Werkself fans sing: “Dragovic! My heart beats for you, Dragovic. He scythes down opponents from behind and has the best hair in the whole league.” With a wink of the eye – exactly to the liking of Aleksandar Dragovic.
When you look at the player’s development, the 30-year-old is extremely determined and ambitious. That was evident early on: As a youngster, the Viennese played for the youth teams at FK Austria and he moved up to the senior squad in 2008. After three successful years at Austria, where Dragovic won the Austrian cup as the first of his four titles, the Austrian with Serbian roots joined the Swiss record champions. He went on to win three league titles and another domestic cup competition with FC Basel. Ahead of his move to Bayer 04, the defensive stalwart spent three years in Ukraine from 2013: The Bayer 04 defender was able to win an impressive five titles with Dynamo Kiev and he made it to the Champions League Round of 16 in 2015/16.
Dragovic moved to Leverkusen in the summer of 2016. With the exemption of the 2017/18 campaign, when he was on loan to Leicester City, he always gave his all for Bayer 04. “Success in football doesn’t happen on its own and nobody gives it to you. Even if you are at the top, you always still have to take one more step than the others,” said Dragovic.
In addition to his uncompromising and robust approach to challenges and tackles, the Austrian is also known for his qualities on the ball. “I would say I’m a central defender who’s good on the ball. If it’s possible I try to be cautious in solving problems. I’m no fan of ‘kick and rush’, where the ball is just booted up field,” said the 30-year-old in assessing his style of play.
The Werkself benefited several times from Drago’s ability to play the game: The talented central defender scored the winner late on in this season’s 2-1 away win for the Werkself at Arminia Bielefeld on matchday 8. A powerful Dragovic volley on the European stage contributed to the 3-2 win against Nice in the Europa League group stage.
In the usual Dragovic manner, the grounded defensive stalwart does not attach too much importance to personal success: “You can never rest. You can be the hero one week and the bogeyman the next. You have to focus on yourself every day and not rest on your laurels from the day before.” And you can be certain: At his favourite club as a child, Drago will give his all every day at the top Serbian side Red Star Belgrade to achieve the maximum success.
The European jersey has been launched, the UEL opponents have been drawn – and anticipation for the European campaign is running high. To mark the occasion, an autograph session was held on Friday afternoon, 28 August, at the Fanwelt with current Werkself player Montrell Culbreath and official club legend Paulo Sergio.
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After six and a half years, Exequiel Palacios is leaving the Bundesliga and moving from Bayer 04 to the Premier League. The Argentine, who as a Werkself player won the World Cup with his national team four years ago and finished as runners-up at this summer’s tournament, will play for newly promoted English side Ipswich Town with immediate effect. The 27-year-old, whose contract in Leverkusen was due to run until 30 June 2030, joined Bayer 04 in January 2020 as a promising young talent. He steadily developed into one of the best defensive midfielders in the German top flight.
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When Exequiel Palacios moved from the Argentinian club River Plate to Bayer Leverkusen on 1 January 2020, the then 21-year-old could not have imagined just how successful the next six and a half years would be for him. Pala, as he is known, had already won the Copa Libertadores – the most prestigious competition in South American club football – with River Plate. But there were still so many more trophies to come.
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To mark Exequiel Palacios’s departure, we’ve put together a compilation of the midfielder’s finest and most important goals from his six-and-a-half years at the club.
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