Head coach Xabi Alonso kept faith with the same starting line-up as in the 4-1 home win against Heidenheim. With the support of a sold-out away section, the Werkself looked to gain control of possession from the start but Mainz were initially more often in and around the opposition box. The first effort from the visitors came from Alejandro Grimaldo on ten minutes but the Spaniard hit his free kick just over the target.
The first goal of the game came from the Mainz player Sepp van den Berg when the defender turned the ball into his own net from a whipped-in cross from Jeremie Frimpong – giving the Werkself the lead (18'). The hosts, starting the matchday next to bottom in the table, adopted a physical and intensive approach to the game to counter the Leverkusen passing play. They were unable to beat the in form Lukas Hradecky in the Werkself goal so that Bayer 04 went into the break 1-0 up and with almost two thirds of possession.
Werkself keeper Hradecky was centre stage for the first goalmouth action in the second half when he pulled off a brilliant reflex save to turn a Karim Onisiwo header over the bar (54’). The second goal of the game came at the other end: Grimaldo hit a free kick from the left of the box over the wall into the left corner of the net to score his second goal of the season (59') following on from his first free kick strike in Munich. Jonas Hofmann increased the lead to 3-0 six minutes later with a volley – and his celebration in front of the away end put the travelling Werkself support in a party mood.
Victor Boniface missed a chance to make it four for Leverkusen with 15 minutes to play when the Nigerian was denied by the Mainz keeper Robin Zentner. Bayer 04 eased off somewhat and the numerous changes on both sides saw a quiet end to the game. The Werkself maintained the three-goal advantage and are now temporarily at least top of the Bundesliga table.
Bayer 04 will set off to Norway on Wednesday for the second group match in the UEFA Europa League at Molde kicking off at 21.00 CEST on Thursday. The double fixture week ends with a home derby against FC Köln on Sunday at 15.30 CEST.
Match stats:
Mainz 05: Zentner - van den Berg, Bell, Fernandes - da Costa (El Ghazi 69’), Barreiro, Kohr (Krauß 69’), Caci - Gruda (Ajorque 76’), Lee (Barkok 69’) - Onisiwo (Richter 84’)
Bayer 04: Hradecky – Kossounou, Tah, Tapsoba - Frimpong (Stanisic 86’), Palacios, Xhaka (Andrich 79’), Grimaldo - Hofmann (Amiri 86’), Wirtz (Adli 63’) - Boniface (Hlozek 79’)
Goals: 0-1 van den Berg (o.g. 18’), 0-2 Grimaldo (59’), 0-3 Hofmann (65’)
Booked: Fernandes, Gruda, Richter, Barreiro - Xhaka
Referee: Benjamin Brand (Unterspiesheim)
Attendance: 33,305 (sold out) at the Mewa Arena
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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With three games to play before the end of the season, the Bayer 04 Women can break one record and equal another at SGS Essen. After three wins on the bounce, coach Roberto Pätzold's team are aiming to maintain the chance of third place in Sunday’s away game (14:00 CEST, Stadion an der Hafenstraße).
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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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From Ouagadougou to Leverkusen – and back: in March, Bayer 04 travelled with Edmond Tapsoba for a special project in his homeland Burkina Faso. The country where his roots and heart lie. The country where he’s more than a world-class defender: a symbol of hope and a role model for an entire generation. The result is a 45-minute documentary about Tapsoba’s long journey from Africa via Portugal to Leverkusen, which offers extraordinary, one-off and emotional insights.
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Edmond Tapsoba has signed an early extension to his contract with Bayer 04 Leverkusen. With two years left on his current deal, the 27-year-old Burkina Faso international has extended his contract until 30 June 2031. The centre-back joined as a young talent from Portuguese top-flight club Vitoria Guimaraes at the start of 2020.
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