From Britain to Leverkusen: Nathan Tella, who will wear the number 19 shirt for the Werkself, is leaving England for the first time for his move under the Bayer Cross. The young forward grew up in Stevenage, a town 43 kilometres north of London. He moved to the UK capital when he had the opportunity to play in the Arsenal youth system. Tella progressed through all the youth teams at the Gunners from 2007. The 1.73 metre tall winger then joined the youth set-up at Southampton in 2017.
Tella later moved up to the first team squad at the Saints and he soon made his debut in the Premier League. He came on as a substitute against Norwich City in the 2019/20 season on 19 June 2020. The then 19-year-old had his first taste of top-flight football in England – his first minutes proved to be successful as Southampton won the away game 3-0.
Tella made 18 league appearances the following season and 14 in the campaign after that. The versatile wizard on the wing then moved on to gain more time on the pitch in 2022/23 in a season-long loan to Burnley, relegated from the Premier League the previous season, in the EFL Championship, the second tier in English football. A stroke of fortune for the Clarets as it turned out. Burnley, with Tella, went straight back up as second division champions and the attacking all-rounder made a significant contribution with his 22 goal involvements in 39 league games. His impressive performances earned him a place in the EFL Championship Team of the Season.
Burnley were promoted back to the Premier League for the 2023/24 season – but without Tella. The 24-year-old returned to Southampton in the summer at the end of his loan with the club now relegated from England's top flight. Tella played three league games for the Saints this season, scoring once and providing one assist. But now he has answered the call of the Bundesliga and Bayer 04. He can now look forward to once again playing in the top-flight at Leverkusen…
Rüdiger Vollborn has been at the club for 40 years, he holds the record number of Bundesliga appearances for the club (401) and is the only Bayer 04 player to have won both the UEFA Cup (1988) and the DFB Pokal (1993). And the Berliner stayed with the Werkself after ending his impressive playing career as he worked as a goalkeeping coach for the following nine years. Vollborn now works under the Bayer Cross as a fan liaison officer and club archivist. Since February 2021, the personalised Black and Red lexicon takes Werkself fans under the heading of 'Rudi recounts...' on a brief trip through the history of Bayer 04 every month…
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"In every ending lies a new beginning" is a well-known saying. This phrase has probably never been more apt at Bayer 04. After winning the Bundesliga in 2023/24 and finishing as runners-up in 2024/25, the summer was the most eventful ever in terms of transfers. Over ten players and the coach, including the coaching staff, left the club. A lot of the heroes of the double-winning side began a new chapter. It was the end of an era. And at the same time the beginning of a new, very exciting and promising chapter for Leverkusen. The Werkself welcomed more than a dozen new arrivals, including experienced title-winners and young talents, to build a new "foundation for a successful team capable of winning titles" under the Bayer Cross, as managing director sport Simon Rolfes put it. A new spirit, a new hunger, a new story was to be created. Bayer04.de looks back at the first few months of this story and the final act of the preseason.
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43 points at the end of the last Bundesliga season were not only more than ever before for the Bayer 04 Women, but also led to a record fourth-place finish. That was followed by a Hinrunde with many more victories, but also some setbacks. In an interview with bayer04.de, sporting director Achim Feifel takes stock at the end of the year.
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With their wonderful goals, Martin Terrier and Florian Wirtz are up for the Bundesliga Goal of the Year 2025. Voting for fans will run exclusively via the official Bundesliga app until Sunday, 4 January.
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A record-breaking year ends for the Bayer 04 Women. Fourth place, 13 wins and 43 points in the 2024/25 campaign - the Werkself have never been so good in the Bundesliga. Coach Roberto Pätzold's team also had plenty of reasons to celebrate in the first half of the new Bundesliga season - although there were also a few disappointments. A look back at 2025 for the Bayer 04 Women’s team.
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