Was it an own goal from the Gladbach keeper Yann Sommer or the first competitive strike for Mitchel Bakker? "I celebrated as if it was my goal," said the 21 year-old full-back with a wink of the eye. But what happened? We take a look back…
Saturday, 21 August 2021. 18.33 CEST. First home match of the season for the Werkself against Borussia. Third minute of the game. Bakker takes a chance from 20 yards out and strikes the ball towards goal. It hits the post and bounces off the standing leg of the Foal's keeper Sommer. And then the ball trickles over the line – 1-0, ecstasy in the stands at the BayArena.
The strike was initially deemed to be an own goal by Sommer but that changed on Monday: The DFL decided the goal was scored by the Leverkusen player. "I'm very happy about that and I'm glad I was able to help the team," declared Bakker whose mission on the day did not end at that point: He set up Moussa Diaby’s goal to make it 3-0 with a pinpoint cross for the Frenchman; with Nadiem Amiri’s goal at 4-0, he picked out Florian Wirtz who then just had to square the ball for the goalscorer.
"He had a big influence on the result against Mönchengladbach because he was involved in several goals. You could see his power and determination," said Bayer 04 head coach Gerardo Seoane in praising the defender. In terms of positional play, the 42-year-old added, "Mitchel still has to improve but that will come with experience. You can't forget he's still a young player and new to the league. It always takes a bit of time."
Bakker himself sees in the 4-0 victory against Gladbach, "that we have lots of quality in our ranks. I hope we can maintain this level and consistently produce good performances." Nevertheless, the Dutchman also has a critical view of the result. "It's clear," he explained, "there is room for improvement – regardless of how well you play. We have to continue to improve. We're working very hard on that in training every day."
Thomas Eichin has been working for Bayer 04 for six years – as Director of Professional Teams since July 2023 – and has contributed to the successful development of our club in many areas. Today, Friday 9 October, Freiburg-born Eichin is celebrating his 60th birthday. We wish him a very happy birthday.
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Exciting experiences and exclusive insights into the Werkself and the BayArena awaited the young footballers from the BA04 Football Academy Guangzhou in China during their visit to the Rhineland this week. As well as taking part in a joint training session with the Bayer 04 Football Academy, the youngsters marvelled at the Bundesliga club’s stadium during a guided tour. The highlight of the visit was a private press conference with former Bayer 04 striker Stefan Kießling, during which he shared tips from his own career with the young players. On Saturday afternoon, 10 October, the group will round off their visit by supporting the Werkself in the away match in Mainz.
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