As usual, head coach Peter Bosz held several training sessions at Bismarckstraße this week but this time dispensed with an FKT (Football fitness training) session. In the shadows of the BayArena, the Dutchman and his fellow coaches worked hard preparing the team for the forthcoming Rhineland clash with the Foals: The Werkself are away to ninth-placed Borussia Mönchengladbach on Saturday, 6 March. The kick off at BORUSSIA PARK is at 15.30 CET and Werks11 Radio will again start broadcasting 30 minutes before kick-off as usual.
Bayer04.de brings you impressions of the training sessions on Wednesday and Thursday – where the goalkeeper trio of Lennart Grill, Niklas Lomb and Marcel Johnen were working flat out in the absence through injury of first choice keeper Lukas Hradecky:
Before that, the Bayer 04 Women are in action: They open matchday 14 against FFC Turbine Potsdam on Friday night, 5 March (kick-off: 19.15 CET/live on Eurosport and MagentaSport). The preview not only contains information on the line-up as well as statements from head coach Achim Feifel but also a link to the Rasenreport magazine. This free online matchday programme provides further details on the clash with the team from Potsdam. Click HERE for the preview.
As VfL Wolfsburg announced on Thursday via Twitter, the long-standing VfL scout Rudi Wojtowicz is in an induced coma. The 64-year-old, who played for the Werkself from 1982 to 1986, collapsed on his way to watching an opposing team. "Our thoughts are with you – fight, Rudi!," was the message from Wolfsburg. We fully concur with that!
A long-standing number one goalkeeper at the Werkself celebrates his 29th birthday: Bayer 04 congratulate Bernd Leno on his birthday and wish him continuing success in the Premier League with Arsenal.
Leno came through the youth ranks at VfB Stuttgart but the 1.90 metre tall keeper made the step up to professional football under the Buyer Cross. Having arrived on loan in the summer of 2011, Bayer 04 made the deal permanent six months later. In the following six and a half years at the Werkself, Leno clocked up an impressive 304 appearances – after Rüdiger Vollborn the second highest number of games of all the goalkeepers in the history of Bayer 04. He joined Arsenal in 2018 and is still between the sticks for the London club.
Landon Donovan was at Leverkusen somewhat longer before Bernd Leno. The striker joined the Werkself from USA club IMG Bradenton Academics in 1999. Initially he played for the Leverkusen second team and then for the senior side for a number of years. Donovan only played seven games for Bayer 04 in the Bundesliga with his most successful time coming later with LA Galaxy. To date, he is one of six USA players to run out for the Werkself. Donovan is 39 years old this Thursday and Bayer 04 send congratulations across the big pond.
Like Donovan at the American second division club San Diego Loyal, another birthday boy is now a head coach: Cottbus head coach Dirk Lottner celebrates his birthday on Thursday and is now 49 years old. Born in Cologne, he played for the Werkself from 1997 to 1999. After hanging up his boots in 2007 and going on to coach at FC Köln, Hansa Rostock and FC Saarbrücken, Lottner has been at the helm of fourth division Energie Cottbus since September of last year. And many happy returns to you too, Dirk – stay fit and healthy.
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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