The 75-minute appearance in the 4-1 home win against TSG Hoffenheim was the last in 2020 for Lars Bender. The vice-captain was due to play at right-back in the following away game at FC Köln (4-0) but suffered an injury in the warm-up. The 31-year-old, who is set to hang up his boots in the summer like his brother Sven Bender, has been forced to watch from the sidelines since then.
Lars Bender rejoined his team-mates for the first time on Monday following rehab and individual sessions during the festive season. And left-back Daley Sinkgraven also took part in the first session of the week after recovering from a Covid-19 infection with a period of self-isolation. Hopes are high that the duo will be back in the first team squad for the next home game against Werder Bremen on Saturday 9 January (kick-off: 15.30 CET).
In his four years under the Bayer Cross, Christoph Daum three times led the Werkself to finish runners-up in the Bundesliga. The 67-year-old was at the helm at Leverkusen from 1996 to October 2000 – and he made a lasting impression on the supporters. In the votes for the Bundesliga All-Stars 2019, he gained the most votes from Bayer 04 fans amongst all the coaches.
Daum recently talked about a current and a former player of his former club from Leverkusen in an interview with Sport1. He deemed comparisons between the youngsters Florian Wirtz, who has been at the Werkself for one year, and Kai Havertz (Chelsea) to be misplaced. Daum: "I can't stand hearing it. Wirtz is not a new Havertz. Please let the lad develop and don't immediately make him the new Havertz and next superstar."
The 17-year-old Germany U21 international does have great potential but should "go his own way and develop his own style." Wirtz is an "incredibly talented player and should be given time," added Daum.
The 18-months at Leverkusen represent a section of his already impressive career that Toni Kroos would not like to forget. In 2018, the central midfield player, who has now been at Real Madrid for six years, said to SPORT BILD: "I've got very good memories of Leverkusen and I'm grateful I had the chance there to improve and perform consistently. It was an incredibly important time in my career."
Born in Greifswald, Kroos joined Bayer 04 on loan from Bayern Munich in January 2009 and he went on to make 43 Bundesliga appearances for the Black and Reds before returning to Munich. The 2014 World Cup winner celebrates his 31st birthday on Monday. Bayer 04 wish Toni: happy birthday!
Bayer 04 TV bring you the best goals, assists and magic moments from our former number 39 in a Werkself shirt. Watch the video HERE.
Werkself-TV shows the highlights of the Bayer 04 women's 4-0 win at SGS Essen on the 24th matchday of the Google Pixel Frauen-Bundesliga 2025/26.
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In the previous game against RB Leipzig in December last year, the Werkself turned came from behind to win 3-1 and further improved Leverkusen's already strong record against the Red Bulls. Montrell Culbreath stood out with his first goal on his debut for the Black and Reds. While the 18-year-old would certainly like to score a second goal against Leipzig on Saturday night, the attack-minded visitors come to the BayArena in confident mood after five Bundesliga victories in a row. The Nordkurve12 supporters group knows the Werkself will therefore once again be reliant on the vociferous support of the fans, and has once again called for the ‘Finally Red’ campaign in the run-in. Today’s matchday news.
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Video games manufacturer Electronic Arts (EA), together with the German Football League (DFL), announced the top male and female selections for the 2025/26 Bundesliga season this week. Bayer 04 striker Vanessa Fudalla is in the starting eleven of the women's "Team of the Season". Alejandro Grimaldo and Aleix Garcia have been selected as bench players in the men's team.
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After matchday 31 and the 2-1 derby win in Cologne, one thing is certain: Bayer 04 will at least compete in the UEFA Europa League in the coming 2026/27 campaign. But the Werkself want more. Looking at the race for Champions League qualification and the remaining three league fixtures, including against direct rivals, bayer04.de outlines the possible scenarios in the season run-in.
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This special event showed once again how strong Bayer 04 are as a team: As part of ‘BarmeniaGothaer gives joy’, the Werkself players Edmond Tapsoba, Ibrahim Maza and Christian Kofane supported the sale of individually designed T-shirts for a good cause at the Fanwelt on Thursday. Several hundred fans came to take part in the charity campaign. Leverkusen's main sponsor BarmeniaGothaer donated the proceeds to the Fondation Edmond Tapsoba, which helps people in Tapsoba's home country of Burkina Faso in their challenging everyday lives.
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