And, after the transfer to Bayer 04 took so long, 'Drago' is keen to finally get started.
"I'm glad it's all finally worked out after what feels like three years," said Dragovic in the afternoon at a first press conference at his new home of the BayArena. He explained in his thoughtful manner the reasons for the move: "I like the style of Bayer 04 and it's similar to that of the national team. I think I can develop well here."
The sporting reasons for his moving to Leverkusen was not the only factor with the political situation in Ukraine also playing a role. "The country is at war and you can't ignore that," said Dragovic who does not regret the move from FC Basel to Dynamo Kiev. "I’ve matured a lot there over the last couple of years," he declared.
And that is why he gave everything for his former club right up to the last minute. Loyalty and commitment-Dragovic likes those virtues. He certainly does not lack character and he is commanding at the tender age of 25. He earned his 50th cap for Austria in Georgia and is one of his country's key players. He is looking to reproduce that at Leverkusen and he took the first steps on Tuesday. "When I joined Rambo and Julian in the dressing room I was the happiest person on earth," said Dragovic. It would be harder to get off to a better start.
Bayer 04 Women missed out on victory in the Google Pixel Bundesliga as they were held to a draw at home to Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday. Estrella Merino Gonzalez had put the Werkself ahead directly from a corner at the Ulrich-Haberland-Stadion, before Laura Freigang levelled for the visitors as it finished all square between fourth and third on Matchday 7.
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Freiburg have made an impressive start to the season, unbeaten in nine games across all competitions, with eight of them wins. Now the Bundesliga leaders come to the BayArena on Sunday to take on the Werkself, but Julian Schuster’s team will be missing their top scorer. Here’s the lowdown on our next opponent.
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Bayer 04 will have to manage without attacking midfielder Martin Terrier for the time being. The Frenchman sustained a muscle injury to his left hamstring yesterday, Thursday 15 October, during the Europa League game against Polish champions Lech Poznan (4–0). Terrier is not expected to be available until late December.
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Following the international break, the Bayer 04 women’s team face their next head-to-head clash in the race for a top spot in the Bundesliga. In Saturday’s home match (14:00 CEST), the fourth-placed side host third-placed Eintracht Frankfurt at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium. Head coach Roberto Pätzold is well aware of the great opportunity this presents for his team.
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