Unfortunately, the training facilities are not so good. The pitch is very uneven and there's not much sign of grass. Training is usually held three times a day in the summer pre-season. Everybody is working hard for the next challenge in the UEFA Cup against Barcelona. We have a tournament and draw 1-1 with HSV but then lose 2-1 against the then Spanish second division side CD Teneriffa. The training camp ends with a 3-0 victory against CF Puerta de la Cruz, another club on the island. But training has priority.
The best anecdote from the training camp is provided by an incident after the match against HSV: We were staying in the same hotel as a former second division referee. In the evening before the game against HSV there was a bet with Reiner 'Calli' Calmund. It was a matter of the sprinting abilities of the two gentlemen, to be more exact about who would finish first across the length of the pitch. The former referee was really fit and Calli still somewhat slimmer than for his marriage but he was considered to be fat. Calli, given a 20 metre start for this race, lifted up his belly with both hands and at the sound of the starting pistol he sets off over the pitch with treble steps like Ben Johnson. The spectators are crying with laughter. His fellow competitor comes nearer and nearer, Calli's trousers start slipping and almost bring him into a stumble. But, in the end, he gets to the target with a slight lead. The bet was for a bottle of champagne that Calli shares with his guests in the evening with great pleasure and a wide grin.
We played in Nuremberg on 20 February 1988. We lost 2-1 in a very decent match where we did not take our chances. The first home fixture of the New Year against Borussia Mönchengladbach was supposed to be the dress rehearsal for the game against Barcelona but unfortunately the match was postponed. So we only had one match in preparation for our first big dual against one of the world famous clubs. That happened in Cologne at the Müngersdorfer Stadium. But that was in March.
Wolfgang Vöge was born on 15 September 1955 in Ahlen, Westphalia and he was the fourth of seven children of a miner. His father, Erich Vöge, was a football referee as well. At an early age, Wolle, as he was called by his friends and teammates, developed a great passion for football and was an enthusiastic fan of BVB. His first success in football was achieved in the amateur game at his hometown club of SV Ahlen. He scored 26 goals in the first season and he came to the attention of scouts. That led to his move to Borussia Dortmund in 1975.
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Andreas Thom was born on 7 September 1965 in Rüdersdorf near Berlin in Brandenburg. Andreas displayed an exceptional talent on the ball even as a child. Early on, he joined the youth section at BFC Dynamo Berlin, one of the leading football clubs in the German Democratic Republic. There he received targeted, performance-oriented training as part of the GDR sports system. His talent, his vision and his technique led him to make his debut in the first team at BFC Dynamo at the age of 17.
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Jens Melzig was born in Cottbus on 28 September 1965. Melle, as he was called at Leverkusen, started his playing career at his hometown club Energie Cottbus. As a young player there he soon stood out thanks to his strength in challenges and his ability to read the game. He was in the Energie Cottbus first team in 1984 and he played for the club in the GDR league and the Oberliga. With 144 appearances and twelve goals he became one of the big players in defence. He made a major contribution to the club during this period – as a strong-tackling central defender who also displayed leadership qualities.
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Lucio, full name Lucimar Ferreira da Silva, was born on 8 May 1978 in Planaltina, a suburb of the Brazilian capital Brasília. He showed his passion for football even as a child. On the dusty streets of his neighbourhood he spent hours chasing the ball – often in bare feet like many Brazilian children. Despite the simple conditions he grew up in, his family always supported his dream of one day becoming a great football player. He made his first steps in club football at small local clubs before moving onto the youth set-up at the club Guará and later he singed for the big club Internacional Porto Alegre. Bayer 04 signed the internationally completely unknown defender from there in January 2000.
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In this video you can watch impressive and important goals in the history of Bayer 04 in the month of September. It is not always about the beauty of the goals but also about remembering special games and players.
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