Lars Bender took over from Simon Rolfes as captain in 2015 when the sporting director hung up his boots. The 31-year-old, with a contract to 2021, has passed on the armband. “I’m convinced a captain belongs on the pitch and has to play regularly. Unfortunately, that wasn’t always the case for me last season. In future, I’d like to fully focus on my duties as a ‘normal’ player – and on my body, my fitness. That’s why I wanted to give up the captain’s armband.”
Charles Aránguiz joined the Werkself in the summer 2015. The Chile international has gone on to make 142 appearances for the Werkself. “Lars is still our captain. Just that he is no longer wearing the armband. He has earned the respect of the whole team and the club. His decision came as a surprise but we accept it and we will support him at all times,” Aránguiz explained. “It’s an honour for me to lead the team onto the field. The club has placed great confidence in me – especially after my serious Achilles injury at the start. And I really feel at home in the team. We have ambitious targets. I’ll give my all for that. On the pitch. And off it as well. Together with Lars and the other leading players.”
The Werkself captains since 1996:
Jens Nowotny 1996-2003
Carsten Ramelow 2003-2008
Simon Rolfes 2008-2015
Lars Bender 2015-2020
Charles Aránguiz from 2020
The penultimate Bundesliga matchday of the calendar year marks the end of an eventful first half of the season for the Bayer 04 Women. After seven wins, one draw and four defeats from the first twelve games of the season, coach Roberto Pätzold's team can go above Werder Bremen in the table with a win on Friday, 12 December (kick-off: 18:30 CET).
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The third showdown in the VBL Club Championship 2025/26 kicks off for the Leverkusen eSports team this Thursday, 11 December (live on the B04eSports Twitch channel from 19:00 CET). In the online preliminary round, the Black and Red will once again take on six previously drawn opponents for a place in the Top 16 and the associated entry into the offline knockout round, which will take place at this third showdown on 19 December in Cologne. Showdown One winners Bayer 04 will face FC St. Pauli, who won the second showdown last month, among others. The lowdown on first three opponents in this online preliminary round.
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After a strong first half, the Werkself conceded twice against Newcastle United in the UEFA Champions League but fought back and " deservedly earned the draw at the end", as captain Robert Andrich aptly put it. Despite opportunities for further Bayer 04 goals, the positive feeling about the irrepressible commitment the final minutes predominated. The Werkself review.
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Alejandro Grimaldo, of course! With his late equaliser (88') in the Champions League clash against Newcastle United, the Spaniard rescued a point for the Werkself, who took the lead through an own goal by Newcastle's Bruno Guimaraes (13') but went with two goals for the visitors scored by Anthony Gordon (51') and Lewis Miley (74'). It was the third draw for Bayer 04 in the current 2025/26 campaign on matchday 6 in the UCL league phase.
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The Werkself will be looking to continue their run in the Champions League against Newcastle United on Wednesday, 10 December (kick-off: 21:00 CET). The two victories without conceding a goal at Benfica (1:0) and Manchester City (2-0) will hopefully be followed by a win at home at the BayArena. Against the English side, who have a player with a Black and Red past in their ranks, the way to victory could be through efficiency in attack and quick transitional play. The latter in particular has recently caused the Magpies problems away from home on the European stage. Fans can also get the stylish matchday sticker for their Sound of Dreams tour pass at the Bayer 04 Fanwelt. The matchday news.
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