The Werkself are set to play Celta Vigo who finished eighth in La Liga last term. The clash with the team from the Spanish Atlantic coast will be played at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium on Saturday, 31 July with the kick-off at 16.00 CEST. The meeting with the Spaniards is the final friendly for Bayer 04 ahead of the opening match of the season, the DFB Cup first round tie away to Lokomotive Leipzig at the beginning of August. Before that there are games against SV Wehen Wiesbaden (14 July) and FC Utrecht (28 July).
Bayer 04 and Celta Vigo played each other in a friendly in August 2017. Back then the clash was the highlight of the season launch event at the BayArena with the game ending in a 3-3 draw with three goals for the Black and Reds in nine minutes (Mehmedi, Pohjanpalo, Volland).
During the training camp in Salzburger Land, the Werkself will play SC Freiburg on departure day (23 July). The Bundesliga clash at the Gernot Langes Stadium, home to WSG Wattens, kicks off at 14.00 CEST. The team and staff will fly back to Germany from Innsbruck after the game.
Celta Vigo profile:
After four years in the bottom half of the table, the club from north-west Spain had a good season last term. After the Argentinian Eduardo Coudet took over as head coach from Oscar Garcia in November of last year, the Galicians only just missed out on qualifying for the newly founded Europa Conference League. Vigo finished up a solid eighth in the table with 53 points to achieve their best finish since 2016.
A strike duo have played a big part in that: Stalwart Iago Aspas scored 14 goals in La Liga and Santi Mina netted 12. Familiar faces from the Bundesliga are striker Emre Mor (formerly Borussia Dortmund) and left back Aaron Martin who returned to Mainz 05, for the time being, at the beginning of July after his six-month loan spell in Spain.
14 July
Bayer 04 vs SV Wehen Wiesbaden, Kurtekotten or Ulrich Haberland Stadium (kick-off: 17.00 CEST)
16-23 July
Training camp in Zell am See/Kaprun
23 July
Bayer 04 vs SC Freiburg, Gernot Langes Stadium in Wattens (kick-off: 14.00 CEST)
28 July
Bayer 04 vs FC Utrecht, Ulrich Haberland Stadium (kick-off: 16.00 CEST)
31 July
Bayer 04 vs Celta Vigo, Ulrich Haberland Stadium (kick-off: 16.00 CEST)
6-9 August
DFB Cup First Round: FC Lokomotive Leipzig vs Bayer 04
14 August
Bundesliga, matchday one: FC Union Berlin vs Bayer 04, An der Alten Försterei stadium (kick-off: 15.30 CEST)
27 August
Europa League group stage draw
16 September
Matchday one in the Europa League
Edmond Tapsoba has signed an early extension to his contract with Bayer 04 Leverkusen. With two years left on his current deal, the 27-year-old Burkina Faso international has extended his contract until 30 June 2031. The centre-back joined as a young talent from Portuguese top-flight club Vitoria Guimaraes at the start of 2020.
Show more
A special surprise: during the preview for the 'Fierté Burkinabè' documentary about Edmond Tapsoba, Bayer 04 directors Fernando Carro and Simon Rolfes announced Tapsoba's contract extension until 2031 together with the centre-back. He then spoke to Werkself-TV about his time in Leverkusen so far and future ambitions...
Show more
This evening was deeply moving: At a really special setting, Bayer 04 exclusively presented the specially produced documentary ‘Fierté Burkinabè’ ("Burkinabe Pride") about Edmond Tapsoba on Tuesday. For the preview at the BayArena, the parents of the Werkself player and other close companions travelled all the way from his African homeland Burkina Faso. The 45-minute film shows Tapsoba's extraordinary career from his beginnings in Ouagadougou to Leverkusen as well as the work of his foundation "Fondation Edmond Tapsoba", with representatives from Burkina Faso also present. Fans can watch the documentary free of charge on Werkself TV and YouTube from Wednesday night at 20:00 CEST.
Show more
Bayer 04 have signed left-back Carolin Simon from champions Bayern Munich for the coming season. The 33-year-old former Germany international, who played for Leverkusen from 2013 to 2016, has signed a contract to 30 June 2028.
Show more
Bayer 04 Women have strengthened for the coming season with the signing of Lobke Loone. The 23-year-old Dutch striker joins from Utrecht on a contract until 30 June 2028.
Show more
