The visitors made the better start in front of 26,101 fans at the Volkswagen Arena in Wolfsburg. Serbia took the lead with less than 15 minutes on the clock with a goal from Eintracht Frankfurt's Luka Jovic (12'). The striker was completely unmarked from a corner and was able to direct his header past the 32-year-old goalkeeper Manuel Neuer into the net. Germany then took control of the game and created two good chances from Timo Werner on 22 minutes, with good work in the build-up from Kai Havertz, and on 37 minutes. Both times, the RB Leipzig striker was unable to beat the Serbian goalkeeper Marko Dmitrovic.
Kai Havertz was substituted at half-time with Marco Reus coming on for the second half. The Germany team. coached by Joachim Löw, upped the pressure after the restart but missed a number of promising chances to level at 1-1 through Reus (59'), Leroy Sané (64') and Ilkay Gündogan (65'). However, there was not long to wait after that: Substitute Leon Goretzka netted the deserved equaliser with a shot from 15 yards out on 69 minutes. Julian Brandt was not on the pitch at this point. The lively Werkself pro was substituted on the hour mark.
After that, Sané (73') and Reus (75') had the best chances to put Germany 2-1 up. The friendly did end with an unsavoury scene: In added time (90+3'), Milan Pavkov cut down Sané with a reckless challenge that earned the Serbian a red card. The Manchester City winger was able to hobble off the pitch. Then came the end ofthe game that saw Jonathan Tah go the full distance.
Germany are back in action on Sunday 24 March with the first competitive international of the year. The Netherlands are the opponents in the European qualifier In Amsterdam. The match kicks off at 20.45 CET.
Just in time for the start of the school year, everyone was hard at work again at NaturGut Ophoven. For the 21st time, Bayer 04 have supported the annual ‘BioBrotbox’ campaign, which puts together a healthy breakfast for first-year primary school pupils in Leverkusen – and not only contributed 1,904 muesli bars but also plenty of enthusiasm too: Together with the U19 players Burak Kir and Clinton Wilson, Emily Wallrabenstein and Paulina Platner from the Women’s Bundesliga team helped with the packing. The latter was clearly delighted “that Bayer 04 are helping out with regional projects like this and showing their commitment to the local community”.
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A group of about 50 members of the Bayer 04 Football Academy São Paulo visited Leverkusen over the past few days, accompanied by Bayer 04 club legend Paulo Sergio and Luiz Felipe (managing director of academy in São Paulo) for a week full of football, encounters and very special insights. In addition to the Bundesliga away game in Elversberg and the home game against Union Berlin, the visit also featured a joint training session with the Bayer 04 Football Academy in Leverkusen and a tour of the Bayer AG facilities. The guests also gained special insights into the club and the world of Bayer 04.
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The men's clothing retailer LERROS will remain the official fashion and premium partner of Bayer 04 for the current season. As in the past, LERROS will provide the club's men's team, coaching staff and management with high-quality clothing for international trips.
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“Diaby! Diaby! Diaby!” was the cry around the BayArena as the Werkself danced in front of the north stand following their 4-0 win over Union Berlin. Captain Edmond Tapsoba gave his new (and old) teammate a friendly shove forward to take in the acclaim from the fans. The returning Frenchman was typically reserved in thanking the supporters but was clearly emotional about what was happening.
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