"Perhaps it's time for a surprise as Leverkusen are always good for that. There’s a chance to upset Bayern," said Ottmar Hitzfeld to the Bild Zeitung ahead of the top Bundesliga match between Bayern Munich and the Werkself on Saturday 5 March (kick-off: 15.30 CET) at the Allianz Arena.
A key role is played by Bayer 04 head coach Gerardo Seoane, who Hitzfeld described as one of his role models. The 73-year-old on the Swiss coach: "Gerardo Seoane impresses me with his style of leadership. I like his human approach. He always comes over in interviews as objective and calm. You can read a lot between the lines with him. He places great value on communication. You can see a strong bond in the Leverkusen team. That's down to the coach." Hitzfeld's comments in full HERE.
Isaiah Okafor, a winter signing for the Leverkusen U17 team has been called up to the Switzerland U17 squad. The central midfielder will join up with the Swiss youth players at a training camp in Tenero on Largo Maggiore from 15 to 18 March. The squad will then be reduced from 28 to 20 players who will travel on to the elite round held in Silkeborg in Denmark. That will determine which teams progress to the 2022 U17 European Championships in Israel. Switzerland are in qualification group two along with Latvia, Sweden and Denmark.
At the age of 16, Marcel Lotka joined the Bayer 04 U17 squad from Rot-Weiss Essen. The 6 foot 2 goalkeeper spent three years at the Black and Reds, where he played for the youth teams and trained with the senior squad. Lotka was in goal for all four group matches in the UEFA Youth League in 2019/20.
The 20-year-old finally moved up to the senior level in the summer of 2020 when he joined the Hertha Berlin second team. Since then, the former Leverkusen keeper has regularly played in the Regional League North-east – and he recently made his Bundesliga debut. The Duisburg-born goalkeeper produced a decent performance in the 3-0 defeat for the Berliners at SC Freiburg. Just a few days later, Borussia Dortmund announced the signing of Lotka on a contract to 2024 with the plan to play him in the BVB U23 team in the third division.
Stefan Kießling is definitely one of the greatest and most successful Werkself players ever – as this number demonstrates: The centre-forward can look back at over 400 Bundesliga appearances. And he broke that barrier 04 years ago today.
The Bayer 04 honorary captain came on as a substitute for Julian Baumgartlinger on 88 minutes in the 2-1 away win against VfL Wolfsburg. Kießling went on to play another three games for the Black and Reds in the top flight. The current first-team squad coordinator made his last appearance on the final day of the season in 2017/18 in a 3-2 home win against Hanover 96 on matchday 34.
Bayer 04 have signed left-back Carolin Simon from champions Bayern Munich for the coming season. The 33-year-old former Germany international, who played for Leverkusen from 2013 to 2016, has signed a contract to 30 June 2028.
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Bayer 04 Women have strengthened for the coming season with the signing of Lobke Loone. The 23-year-old Dutch striker joins from Utrecht on a contract until 30 June 2028.
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The Werkself returned from the near one-month break in the Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga with a convincing victory at home. Roberto Pätzold's side beat SC Freiburg 4-1 on Sunday afternoon, with goals from Katharina Piljic, Estrella Merino Gonzalez, Cornelia Kramer and Carlotta Wamser ensuring a 13th win of the season at the Ulrich-Haberland-Stadion. The Black and Reds, who are now on 40 points, move up to fourth place at least overnight.
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The fifth consecutive derby win over 1. FC Köln was a hugely significant one in terms of the battle for the UEFA Champions League places. Goalkeeper Janis Blaswich, speaking for the whole team, dedicated the 2-1 victory in the cathedral city to the travelling support: "I'm especially happy about this victory for our fans!" Get the rest of the reaction from those involved and the media, as well as some impressive stats on two-goal hero Patrik Schick and a look at the all-time Bundesliga table, in the Werkself Review.
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