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."
This afternoon, Saturday 24 January (kick-off: 15.30 CET), Bayer 04 host SV Werder Bremen, who are winless in their last seven league games. Nevertheless, in their last outing, a 3-3 draw against Eintracht Frankfurt, where they conceded a late equaliser, the Green and Whites did show their team spirit. The Werkself, led by birthday boy Patrik Schick, will be looking to counter this and secure their first three points of the new year on this ‘!Never Again’ remembrance matchday to commemorate the victims of National Socialism. Read on for the latest information in today's matchday news.
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Happy birthday, Patrik Schick! On his special day, it's not just the Czech striker who can look forward to lots of presents and hopefully many more goals – Bayer 04 fans can also get their hands on a free number 14 print when they buy a Werkself jersey today, January 24! In addition, a match-worn jersey belonging to the now 30-year-old will be raffled off among all purchasers next week.
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Werkself-TV shows the highlights of the Bayer 04 women's 2-1 win at 1. FC Union Berlin on the 15th matchday of the Google Pixel Frauen-Bundesliga 2025/26.
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Despite a severely depleted squad and being a player down, the Bayer 04 Women made a winning start to their 2026 campaign. Coach Roberto Pätzold's team won 2-1 at newly promoted FC Union Berlin on Friday night thanks to a last-minute goal. Vanessa Fudalla scored from a direct free-kick (78') and Kristin Kögel (90+2’) in stoppage time for the Werkself, who were reduced to ten players on 68 minutes, on an atmospheric stage at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei. As a result, the Black and Reds are now fifth in the table for at least one night at the start of matchday 15.
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The Werkself are looking for the first win of the new calendar year: Ahead of the sold-out Bundesliga home match against SV Werder Bremen on Saturday, 24 January (kick-off: 15:30 CET), head coach Kasper Hjulmand spoke about taking chances, possible winter transfers and a “Lion" returning to the Leverkusen matchday squad.
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