After the hard-fought 1-0 win against Borussia Mönchengladbach in the DFB Cup, the Bayer 04 pros had the chance to take a well-deserved break over the festive period into the New Year. Although this winter break has been shorter than normal due to the World Cup finals in the summer with the associated earlier start to the second half of the Bundesliga campaign, Werkself players and coaching staff used the opportunity to get far away to recharge their batteries: Bernd Leno spent a couple of days in New York, Stefan Kießling went to Austria with his family, Joel Pohjanpalo took a break in Helsinki and Karim Bellarabi went to Africa.
Today, the focus is clearly on the restart of the league campaign with what promises to be a cracker of a match on Friday 12 January at 20.30 CET in front a sell-out crowd at the BayArena against the runaway league leaders and reigning champions Bayern Munich. After the opening session on Tuesday, the Werkself have a double shift on Tuesday (10.30 CET and 15.30 CET) with another public session on Thursday (15.30 CET) before the first of two friendlies. Bayer 04 entertain second division SpVgg Greuther Fürth at the Haberland Stadium on Friday before taking on third division Preußen Münster at the same venue on Saturday. The two games kick off at 14.00 CET. The three South Americans Charles Aránguiz, Wendell and Lucas Alario will join their team-mates on Wednesday as Heiko Herrlich has given the trio an extra day off due to the long journeys from Chile, Brazil and Argentina.
There is another highlight for the Werkself at the weekend. During the ARD Sportschau TV show on Sunday the draw will be held for the quarter-finals of the DFB Cup at 18.00 CET – and it's fingers crossed for a favourable draw in the last eight.
Season tickets for the Werkself home matches in the new Google Pixel Women’s Bundesliga season are now on general sale. The season ticket is valid for all 13 matches at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium. The first home match will be played between 28 and 31 August against the runners-up, VfL Wolfsburg, followed by the clash with the German champions, Bayern Munich, between 11 and 14 September.
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A new team, a new environment, a new challenge—and yet one thing remains the same for Afonso Moreira: his attitude. Total dedication, discipline, and the drive to improve every day have defined the Portuguese player since his early days at Sporting CP. “Even back then, I realized I had to work hard to achieve my goals,” said the 21-year-old. His parents also instilled those values in him from a young age. Values that have driven him ever since, accompanied him to France when he signed for Lyon, and now also form the foundation for his new chapter at Bayer 04. At a media session, the lightning-fast winger spoke about his values, as well as his new teammates, the new coach, and his targets at the club.
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Former Bundesliga and Germany keeper Manfred Manglitz, who was promoted to the Oberliga West with Bayer 04 in 1962, passed away on Monday at the age of 86.
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Justine Brandau and Lobke Loonen joined the Bayer 04 Women’s squad in quick succession this summer. The two Dutch players have been friends since their youth days, and are now playing for the same club for the first time. In an interview at the training camp in Rieden, Brandau and Loonen talk, amongst other things, about their experiences as opponents in the Vrouwen Eredivisie, the dynamic within their new team and their first few weeks in Leverkusen.
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