In the first half, Bayer 04 are playing into a low sun and very strong wind. Leverkusen are unable to make the most of dominating possession. The two sides going goalless at half-time.
After the restart, the hosts are camped in the opposition half. Dr Klaus Heydenreich, with an assist from Hans-Otto Peters, gives Bayer 04 the deserved lead at 1-0 on 50 minutes with the help of the wind. A minute later, with a counter-attack from Herten, goalkeeper Friedhelm Renno makes a save with a full-length dive. He collides with a Herten player and both fall to the ground. But the Bayer keeper does not get up again. He has broken his ankle. Renno is carried off on a stretcher and defender Werner Biskup pulls on the keeper’s shirt.
With eleven against ten, the visitors sense a chance and pepper the stand-in goalkeeper. But he not only surprises the spectators. Diving, catching and punching he keeps a clean sheet. And the ten Leverkusen players not only resist but also go on the front foot. Heydenreich increases the lead with two more goals on 65 and 80 minutes to make it 3-0 and clock up a hat-trick. The fourth goal on 85 minutes is scored by the young Hans-Joachim Wöhler who made the step up to the first team from the youth ranks in the summer. Werner Biskup did have to pick the ball out of the back of the net in the end. But that doesn't matter as all the Bayer 04 fans go home happy after the 4-1 win. New Year's Eve 1963 can come.
Christoph Daum was born on 24 October 1953 in Zwickau. As a child, he moved to West Germany with his mother and grew up in Duisburg. He developed a great enthusiasm for football at an early age, even though it soon became clear that his future lay less on the pitch than on the sidelines. Even at a young age, his passion for analysing, explaining and improving things became apparent.
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When the Bayer 04 players celebrated Christmas in 1960, they spent the winter in second place in the Oberliga West 2 on 20 points - but already five points behind leaders Schwarz-Weiß Essen. However, coach Erich Garske's team are struggling to get back on track in the new year. A goalless draw against Bonner FV at home at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium was followed by a 2-1 away defeat in Erkenschwick. The following home game also yielded just one point. As a result, the team's promotion ambitions dwindled to a minimum, as the gap to the coveted spot has now grown to a challenging ten points.
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In this video you can see impressive and important goals in Bayer 04 history from the month of February. It's not always about the beauty of the goals, but also a reminder of special games and players.
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It is 11 February 2006 and Schalke 04 and the Werkself kick off at 3.30 p.m. in a match that ends up being historic - at least from a Bayer 04 perspective.
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As league leaders, the Werkself welcomed the relegation-threatened team from Rhenania Würselen. On 4 February 1951, 5,000 spectators line the touchlines despite the Sunday carnival parades. And they see a home team that is superior on the pitch. Without Theo Kirchberg, who was ill, and Emil Becks, who was suspended, the hosts attacked the opposing goal from the start. Battling against a strong wind in the first half, Bayer 04 created chance after chance, but were repeatedly thwarted by the Würselen goalkeeper. With the score at 0-0 at half-time, Karl Heinz Spikofski tried his luck on 55 minutes and hammered the ball into the opposition net from 20 metres out. Rhenania can no longer counterattack. The siege of the Würselen penalty area continued right to the end, but the game ended in a narrow 1-0 win.
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