Just one point from the last two games away to FC Köln and at home to FC Augsburg – no surprise that caused great disappointment amongst the Werkself players and management as well as the fans. Nobody at Bayer 04 is making any bones about it. However, complaining and moaning rarely lead to an upturn in form; shake yourselves down, look forward and get ready to fight has to be the maxim now. At the end of the day, the Werkself have proved more than once that they are capable of quickly getting back on track after setbacks. This frustration tolerance paired with passionate team spirit was identified by Heiko Herrlich in last summer's pre-season when the team and staff spent several hours climbing the Schmittenhöhe mountain in SalzburgerLand. "It won't be the last obstacle to face us that we need to overcome together," was the message at the time.
The Leverkusen head coach was able to take positives out of his team's performance against Augsburg on Easter Saturday, "but the result feels like a defeat," said the 46-year-old coach without beating about the bush. The only good thing about the situation: Bayer 04 still have every chance of achieving the target for the season ahead of the final six Bundesliga fixtures. "We've unnecessarily brought pressure upon ourselves but everything is still in our own hands," said goalkeeper Bernd Leno with regard to qualifying for Europe, ideally for the Champions League.
The fourth month of the year promises to be a thriller: In the forthcoming 04 league matches in April, Bayer 04 face the teams in fourth place (RB Leipzig/9.4.), sixth (Eintracht Frankfurt/14.4.), third (Borussia Dortmund/21.4.) and eighth (VfB Stuttgart/28.4.) in the current top-flight table. Heiko Herrlich has often compared the season with a marathon as it comes down to stamina. At the same time, there is an acute increase in pace amongst the participants as the home straight slowly draws into view. Now it comes down to creating a position in the clashes with direct rivals that keeps open all options in the run-in.
The Werkself clearly demonstrated in the first half of the season their ability to master the forthcoming challenges. There were no defeats in any of the four following encounters: Against Leipzig (2-2) and Dortmund (1-1), Bayer 04 earned a point with ten men with the Black and Reds winning the two games in Frankfurt (1-0) and Stuttgart (2-0). Julian Brandt, whose apparent winner against Augsburg was chalked off due to a VAR intervention, said straight after the goalless draw against the Bavarian Swabians that he never thinks of giving up looking for the maximum return. "I'm always looking to achieve the best possible result and this season that's qualifying for the Champions league. We definitely want to achieve that target," said the Germany international.
The second friendly and the first goal for the Bayer 04 Women: The Werkself just missed out on their first win in the preseason away to top-flight Dutch side PEC Zwolle. The team led by coach Roberto Pätzold drew 1-1 on Friday afternoon in Wezep. As with the friendly against TSG Hoffenheim (0-2) a number of first-team players were absent. The coach once again shared out time on the pitch for the 20-player squad. The goal of the match was scored by summer signing Vanessa Fudalla (67').
Show moreContinuity under the Cross: After the successful season in 2024/25 with reaching the final of the VBL Club Championship, the two Leverkusen e-sports players Marc and Sean Landwehr have extended their contracts at Bayer 04 by an additional two years. Marc is thereby in his sixth year and Sean in his third year with the Werkself. Together with e-talent Marcus Hüttemann, who has also extended his stay at Bayer 04 Bayer year, completes the current squad for the 2025/26 season.
Show moreAn average of over 3,500 fans supported the Werkself at away games last season. Looking forward to the 2025/26 season, Bayer 04 now provide information on ticket sales for away games. The previous 0 sales phase is being replaced by the Regulars phase.
Show moreThe German Football League (DFL) has confirmed the details for the first five matchdays in the 2025/26 Bundesliga season. Read on for details of the fixtures.
Show more