In an interview with bayer04.de, the 26-year-old versatile defender talks about his deep-rooted connection to the Werkself, friends for ever from his time in Black and Red and the forthcoming match against his former club...
Marlon, you were at Leverkusen for 14 years. What does Bayer 04 mean to you now?
Frey: A lot! I joined Leverkusen at the age of seven, went through all the youth teams and later made it to the first team squad. And then being able to make your Bundesliga debut for your own club as a youth player definitely ensures an affinity for life.
Looking at your right elbow you can say: Bayer 04 is still getting under your skin…
Frey: You could put it like that. (He laughs) About a year after my first Bundesliga match I got a tattoo with the date of my debut. All my tattoos have a special significance for me – either in relation to the family or to football. So that fitted in really well…
Even though it's just a friendly: Do you feel a bit more motivation for Saturday because it's against your former club?
Frey: Motivation with all of us has been extremely high from the first day of the preseason. It doesn't depend on a certain opponent as it's all about where you start in the season. For me it's more about great excitement at meeting up again with a lot of familiar faces from back then.
There are one or two of your former Leverkusen teammates in the current Werkself squad. Are you still in contact with teammates from back then?
Frey: Yes, with a few. I often write to Lombo (goalkeeper Niklas Lomb, ed.). But I was also good friends with Julian (Brandt) and Kai (Havertz) and I'm still in contact with them. And there are still a lot of people working on the staff or in the medical section who were there during my time at Leverkusen.
You are in the middle of the preseason with MSV while Bayer 04 have only been together for a week and a lot of international players are only coming back now. What sort of game are you expecting in Velbert on Saturday?
Frey: Individual quality is definitely higher at Leverkusen than with us and they aren't in the Champions League for no reason. Although we are perhaps a bit further on in the preseason we definitely won't be fully fit for the match. But we will make it as hard as possible for them to beat us in the friendly.
You were involved in a relegation battle with Duisburg last season until just before the end. What's your assessment of your preseason so far and what are your targets for the coming season?
Frey: I've been very impressed so far. Everybody's putting in a shift, we are working hard and we have trained twice almost every day for the past three weeks. Intensity is very high for us and that makes us feel good for the forthcoming challenges.
You have three strong opponents in the friendlies in Bayer 04, Borussia Mönchengladbach and Athletic Bilbao. Is that a preseason you like?
Frey: Definitely. I’m at an age where you should have big targets and lots of years ahead of you. It’s a couple of years since I played in the Bundesliga but I obviously have the target of getting back to that level once again. As a competitive sportsman you always want to go to the limit – and also always play against the best.
The Werkself play the first friendly in preparation for the 2022/23 season against MSV Duisburg on Saturday 9 July. The match against the third division team at the IMS Arena in Velbert kicks off at 15.30 CEST. The ticket office opens two hours before kick-off at 13.30 CEST. All proceeds from the friendly go to SSVg Velbert.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into the 2025/26 Bundesliga season with another partner in the Sponsors Club. The previous Executive Box partner pure.energy has extended their commitment and taken the established partnership with the current German runners-up to the next highest level. The newly defined cooperation between Bayer 04 and pure.energy is set to run for two years to 30 June 2027.
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Side-by-side with Bayer 04 Idol Rudi Völler, the Werkself women's team player Carlotta Wamser campaigned for amateur football in the community of Hürtgen in the district of Düren. As part of a VIP discussion group joining together for the launch of the DFB campaign ‘Punktespiel 2.0’, Germany international Wamser, DFB director of professional football Völler plus DFB president Bernd Neuendorf and DFB vice-president Peter Frymuth talked about the new club campaign organised by the German Football Association (DFB) at the FC Grenzwacht Hürtgen clubhouse.
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Bayer 04 player Carlotta Wamser is part of a VIP group joining together for the launch of the DFB campaign Punktespiel 2.0. The Germany international, who signed for the Werkself in the summer, will be speaking tonight (Monday) alongside former Leverkusen managing director sport Rudi Völler, now the current DFB sporting director, plus DFB president Bernd Neuendorf and DFB vice-president Peter Frymuth at the FC Grenzwacht Hürtgen club house about the new clubs campaign launched by the German Football Association (DFB).
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The Werkself are away to FC St. Pauli on Matchday 5 in the 2025/26 Bundesliga campaign. The game at the Millerntor Stadion will be played on Saturday, 27 September with the kick-off at 15:30 CEST. Read on for information on ticket sales.
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After seven days in Rieden, Bavaria, Bayer 04 Women returned to Leverkusen on Saturday. With a lot of intensive training sessions on the pitch and a high-quality friendly against Bundesliga runners-up VfL Wolfsburg (2-3) in their legs, the Werkself party left the Hotel Gut Matheshof with a lot of valuable insights. Head coach Roberto Pätzold discussed the key points from the training camp.
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