Dimitar Berbatov gave a really warm welcome to his old mate Boris Zivkovic. The Brazilians Paulo Sergio and Juan - who played for the Werkself at completely different times - sat at one table with their families. UEFA Cup winner Bum-kun Cha embraced his former team-mates Falko Götz and Rüdiger Vollborn. And Markus Münch was given a good shaking as one of the last arrivals by former physio Dieter Trzolek. It was a special sort of meeting of the generations that took place on this Saturday ahead of the Bundesliga home game for the Werkself against Schalke 04.
"I played at Leverkusen for five and a half years, longer than for any other club - it's like being at home for me here," said Dimitar Berbatov, who made 154 Bundesliga appearances and scored 69 goals for the Werkself between January 2001 and June 2006. The Bulgarian was not only a first-class striker but also one of the finest footballers to wear Leverkusen shirt. "In Leverkusen I developed from a boy into a man and it's great to be able to meet up with former team-mates and the fans this weekend as well as experiencing the whole atmosphere here once again," declared a happy 'Berba', who, after stints at Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United, was last at the BayArena with AS Monaco in the Champions League in 2014.
And the great career of Paulo Sergio also began at Leverkusen. The Brazilian was signed from Corinthians São Paulo in 1993. "It all started here. Leverkusen was my first club in Europe. I had a great time at Bayer 04 even if the first months were really difficult for me. I was one of very few foreigners and I had to learn German very quickly," recalls Paulo Sergio with a smile. "Bernd Schuster really helped me back then also because he often had to act as my interpreter – he could speak Spanish."
The now 49-year-old particularly likes to recall his spectacular goal against FC Köln in 1996: "Of course, I'll always remember the ball I controlled with my heel and then volleyed into the corner of the net with my left foot - also because it was later voted Goal of the Month." The fans favourite, who made 121 Bundesliga appearances and scored 47 goals for Bayer 04 in four years, went to AS Roma for two years after his time at Leverkusen and then finally onto Bayern Munich. "Bayer 04 and FC Bayern are my two favourite clubs," said Sergio. "I learned an incredible amount at Leverkusen and I'm very grateful for that."
His fellow countryman Juan, who played for Bayer 04 from 2002 to 2007, was back in Leverkusen on Saturday for the first time since Bernd Schneider's testimonial in 2010. He also is very grateful for his five years at Leverkusen. "I always really felt at home here and during that period I matured as a person," said Juan. "It was great that I was able to play alongside Lucio my good friend in central defence in my first season. We complemented each other really well." Juan finally ended his playing career a few weeks ago at Flamengo Rio de Janeiro and he received an emotional farewell at the Maracana Stadium.
Moments never to be forgotten were experienced by the Bayer 04 legends just before the kick-off of the game against Schalke 04: Over 40 Leverkusen heroes from four decades in the Bundesliga were individually introduced by the stadium announcers Tobias Ufer and Pitti Dahl. That included the coaches Willibert Kremer, Gerd Kentschke and Christoph Daum as well as the Bundesliga All-Stars, as voted for by Werkself fans, Bum-kun Cha, Bernd Schneider, Ulf Kirsten, Andy Thom, Christian Wörns, Jens Nowotny, Zé Roberto, Rudi Völler, Stefan Kießling, Simon Rolfes and many more besides. Accompanied by standing ovations from the fans, the Bundesliga heroes marched from the North Stand past the West Stand onto the pitch. At the same time, Bayer 04 supporters unfurled a huge banner with the Bayer Cross on as well as a banner in B block plus thousands of black and red flags were waved. An incredibly exciting experience!
The honoured guests then watched the Werkself draw 1-1 with Schalke 04 from the VIP area. Sunday morning brings the Day of Tradition and the match between the Bundesliga All-Stars at 10.00 CET at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium.
The Golden Boy Top 100 traditionally lists Europe’s most promising young players. In the latest update, published to mark the start of the new season, four current Werkself players – alongside loanee Francis Onyeka – feature on the list. This means Bayer 04 have the most players in contention of any Bundesliga club.
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Goalkeeper Rafaela Borggräfe will continue to play for Bayer 04 Leverkusen next season. The loan of the Germany U23 international, who joined from Liverpool in the winter, has been extended by a further year.
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The Bayer 04 delegation, led by Fernando Carro, CEO, concluded their multi-day trip to Brazil with a visit to the community-based organisation Bola Pra Frente in Rio de Janeiro – founded by former Werkself player Jorginho. During the visit, Bayer 04 committed to extending support for the Bola Pra Frente project for a further five years. In addition, Jorginho, a member of the Brazil 1994 World Cup-winning squad, was named Bayer 04’s second official club legend. With the visit to São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, the club has strengthened the relationships built up over the years in one of Bayer 04’s most important international markets.
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Ten years after retiring as a player, Kristina Sundov is returning to the Bayer 04 Women’s team as assistant coach. The 39-year-old former Croatia international takes over from Remzi Kahraman, who has taken up a new challenge abroad. She has been given a contract to 30 June 2028.
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The training pitches at the BayArena are already buzzing with activity again, even before training officially begins next week. On Monday morning, a small group from the Werkself first-team squad completed a session lasting around an hour. Both new and familiar faces were present.
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