News in brief: Vote now for the Goal of the Month in May

The Werkself players Lucas Alario, Exequiel Palacios, with one goal each, and striker Patrik Schick, with two impressive strikes, have qualified for the final Goal of the Month competition in the current season. Alario impressed with his goal making it 4-2 in the away game at TSG Hoffenheim on the penultimate matchday. Schick also stood out in the same match with his two goals at 1-1 and 3-1. In turn, Pala showed a fine touch with his last-minute masterpiece to make it 2-1 in the last game of the season against SC Freiburg. The Argentina international scored in the 97th minute with a shot into an empty net from the semi-circle to round off the 2021/22 season.

You can vote now on the club’s Facebook page. You can see all the goals again there. The winner will be announced on Thursday 26 May.

Wirtz in FUT 22 TOTS

Youngster Florian Wirtz has also received an award: The 19-year-old received his FIFA 22 Team of the Season card this morning. With absolute top numbers, the Werkself player was voted into the top team for the 2021/22 season alongside outstanding players such as Manuel Neuer, Robert Lewandowski, Erling Haaland and Jude Bellingham.

Moussa Diaby and Jeremie Frimpong were also included in the extended squad by the fans. We say: Fully deserved. Congratulations.

Trio at U19 course

There is no summer break yet for the Bayer 04 Women's team players Chiara Bücher, Clara Fröhlich and Sofie Zdebel as they are currently at a U19 course organised by the German Football Association (DFB). The Germany youth players are in Krefeld up to Friday 27 May to prepare for the forthcoming European Championships. The tournament will be held in the Czech Republic on 26 June to 9 July.

Son new top goalscorer

Former Werkself player Heung-Min Son has won the Golden Boot award as the top goalscorer in the Premier League in 2021/22. The lightning-fast forward scored 23 goals for Tottenham Hotspur in 35 league games, the same number as Liverpool striker Mo Salah. Son netted a brace on the final matchday in a 5-0 win against Norwich City. The South Korea international became the first Asian player to be top goalscorer in England.

The South Korea player with 98 caps played under the Bayer Cross for two years before heading to England in the summer of 2015. Son scored 22 goals and provided eleven assists in 87 games for the Black and Reds.

Historic days

24 May evokes memories at the Werkself: On matchday 33 in the 1996/97 season, the Black and Reds were certain of finishing second in the Bundesliga, which meant the team under coach Christoph Daum finished runners-up for the first time. Beyond that, Bayer 04 thereby qualified for the UEFA Champions League for the first time in the club's history.

It was a different situation six years later: The team from Leverkusen secured 15th place in the table on the final matchday in the 2002/03 season to ensure their top-flight status. Yildiray Bastürk scored the only goal of the game in the 1-0 win against FC Nürnberg preventing his team from being relegated to the second division.