Match of the month I: From a dream – First the Bökelberg, then TV
Two dreams…
1996/97: First the Bökelberg, then TV
A week after the home win against Werder Bremen in the 1996 – 97 season, the Werkself head to the Bökelberg in Mönchengladbach. With five games to play, there is still the chance of a first league title with a three-point gap to league leaders Bayern Munich and a seven-goals worse goal difference. The Werkself get off to a flying start at that legendary stadium: Niko Kovac puts the visitors ahead after 40 seconds. With aggressive in challenges and full motivation, the Werkself have Gladbach on the ropes in the first half and they lead 2-0 at half-time with the second goal scored by Ulf Kirsten. Borussia pressed our team back into their own half after the restart. The hosts pull a goal back on 65 minutes and then, to the dismay of all Leverkusen players, the equaliser comes in the last minute of the game.
The next day all the Bayer 04 players are sitting in front of the TV watching the Munich derby between 1860 and FC Bayern. With the score at 2-2, the Bayern player Christian Ziege is shown a second yellow card and 1860 go 3-2 up on 82 minutes through Jörg Böhme. Lothar Matthäus is sent off a minute later again with a second yellow card for FC Bayern. However, Carsten Jancker nets the leveller for the nine men on 88 minutes.
For me, that is still the crucial matchday in the title race as a win against Borussia Mönchengladbach at the same time as a deserved defeat for FC Bayern against 1860 Munich would have put us level on points with the league leaders. Whether that would have been enough in the end is debatable but the chances would have been greater. The 4-0 defeat in the derby at FC Köln on matchday 33 finally settled matters and Bayern were the champions of Germany. We were left with second place and a slot in the Champions League qualifiers, which saw us progress in August after two games against Dinamo Tbilisi. In the final home game of the season against VfL Bochum, I was able to make Bundesliga appearance 399 and for me it was my best season at Bayer 04.
Related News
Bayer 04 - 01.08.2025
History: 75 years ago – The 1950/51 season (August)
Bayer 04 started the new season on 20 July 1950. To the applause from almost 2,000 spectators, the Werkself stepped onto the pitch at the Am Stadtpark stadium and the season target was clear to the supporters: finally achieve promotion to the Oberliga West. Under the direction of new coach Raymond Schwab, who brought one of his Essen players with him in the shape of Karl-Heinz Spikofski, the team did a couple of laps. Coach Schwab gave a speech in front of all the fans where he clearly imparted his request for calm in the stands and he said he hated nothing more than heckling or laughing when mistakes are made. He hoped the Bayer 04 supporters would follow his advice.
Show more
Bayer 04 - 01.08.2025
Birthday boy of the month I: Horst Knauf turns 65
Horst Knauf was born in Cologne on 16 August 1960. As a teenager he played for PSV Köln before signing for the Bayer 04 Leverkusen U19s as a talented midfielder in 1976. He made the move up from the second team to the Bundesliga squad in 1980. Over the following three years he played 39 Bundesliga games and scored two goals. Above all in the difficult 1981/82 season for the Werkself with the play-off games against Kickers Offenbach, he played a big part in saving Bayer 04 with 21 appearances. But under the new coach Dettmar Cramer he rarely made a start and he decided to move on.
Show more
Bayer 04 - 01.08.2025
Birthday boy of the month II: Holger Aden turns 60
Holger Aden was born in Hamburg on 25 August 1965. He learned all about playing football and, above all, scoring goals at the two Hamburg clubs Niendorfer TSV and TSV DuWo 08 Hamburg. After progression from the youth teams, he played for other Hamburg clubs. One after the other he appeared for Concordia Hamburg, Altona 93 and SC Norderstedt. The centre-forward regularly found the back of the opposition net. He scored 22 goals for SC Norderstedt in the 1988/89 season.
Show more
Bayer 04 - 01.08.2025
Legends: Michael Ballack, the Capitano
Michael Ballack was born in Görlitz in the GDR on 26 September 1976. He displayed his talent for football at a young age. After his family moved to Karl-Marx-Stadt, now called Chemnitz, he started playing for BSG Motor ‘Fritz Heckert’ Karl-Marx-Stadt where he constantly continued to develop his ability on the pitch. From year seven he went to the children and youth sports college and there he received systematic support in sport that led, against the background of his increasing ability, to a move to FC Karl-Marx-Stadt. At the age of 16, he had to take a six-month break due to growing pains, but then there was no stopping Michael after that.
Show more
Bayer 04 - 01.08.2025
Goals of the month: From Kießling to Ökland
In this video you can watch impressive and important goals in the history of Bayer 04 in the month of August. It is not always about the beauty of the goals but also about remembering special games and players.
Show more
