
Markus, what's your connection with 9 March 1997?
Feldhoff: People keep asking me about that day. For me, the three goals against Bayern Munich are the highlight of my sporting career. You don't beat Bayern 5-2 every day of the week.
Let's talk about those three goals. Paulo Sergio and René Rydlewicz scored the first two goals and then you made it 3-0 on 42 minutes.
Feldhoff: Calle Ramelow had a shot and I slid into the ball. It wasn't a spectacular goal. In the second half, Bayern came back at 3-2, I was pretty knackered and I'd already indicated I wanted come off. But Christoph Daum left me on.
And then you wrapped it up with two more goals on 80 and 84 minutes.
Feldhoff: The fourth goal came from a set piece with the ball landing at my feet. I just stopped it and shot from 4 or 5 yards out. With the fifth goal Ze Elias hit the ball from the halfway line, I was one-on-one with Oliver Kahn, I beat him and put the ball in the net. Bayern complained that I'd handled it. And I don't think they were completely wrong.
A few weeks later you tore your cruciate in a game against Freiburg. You describe that as a turning point in your career.
Feldhoff: Yes, because I never really recovered from that. I had an operation on 24 March by the specialist Dr Steadman in Colorado and I returned to full training on 26 June after just three months rehab. That was obviously too early. Nowadays it takes at least six months to recover from an injury like that.
How do you rate your three years at Leverkusen between 1995 and 1998?
Feldhoff: For me, the time at Leverkusen was the best in the Bundesliga. In my first year I played with Rudi Völler, Bernd Schuster and Paulo Sergio. Ulf Kirsten was obviously a big rival. In my second season I was on track up to the injury. Bayer 04 are a great club and I have a lot of very good memories. When I returned to Leverkusen in 2014 as part of my coach training to watch Sami Hyypiä, I really felt at home straightaway.


A round-up of the Werkself training camp in the Weimarer Land, all in one place: in our daily blog you’ll find all the insights and updates from the day. Day four (Wednesday 5 August) is all about training. The day begins with a gruelling open training session – new signing Miguel Gutiérrez also takes part. A second session follows in the afternoon, this time behind closed doors.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen have signed Spanish left-back Miguel Gutiérrez from Napoli. The 25-year-old has signed a contract with the club to 30 June 2031. Gutiérrez came through the youth ranks at Real Madrid; he moved to Italy a year ago from Girona, and he played a key role for Napoli with 36 appearances. The big Italian club finished last season as runners-up in Serie A.
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New signing Miguel Gutiérrez arrives in Leverkusen having won the Champions League, the Spanish league title and an Olympic gold medal. However, the 25-year-old Spaniard, signed from Napoli, is looking to the future – he wants to write the next chapter of success with the Werkself. Bayer04.de takes a closer look at the skilful, attack-minded left-back, who will wear the number 3 jersey.
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The Werkself's training camp in Weimarer Land all in one place: in our daily blog you'll find all the insights and updates from the day. Day three (Tuesday 4 August) begins with a thorough open session on the pitch. After lunch, some players have media engagements at the team hotel, and then the team come together for a barbecue in the evening.
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