Compared with the 4-0 win against Union Berlin before the international break, head coach Xabi Alonso made one change: Robert Andrich replaced Jonathan Tah in defence. The 4,000 travelling Bayer 04 fans witnessed a forceful approach from Werder Bremen at the start of the game. As usual, the Werkself endeavoured to maintain possession and control the game. There were brief celebrations on six minutes when Victor Boniface found the back of the net from a Granit Xhaka pass but it was chalked off due to an offside decision.
The lead did come shortly after that: A cross from Jonas Hofmann found Bremen player Olivier Deman but his attempt to clear ended up with the ball in the back of his own net (9'). Boniface had a good chance to make it 2-0 after 15 minutes but the shot on goal was blocked. The Werkself continued to have the upper hand, had more of the game and were quick to win the ball back after losing possession. The at times very involved passing in midfield rarely ended in clear-cut chances as Werder Bremen were alert at the back. The committed approach from the Werkself was rewarded again at the end of the first half: Piero Hincapie put the ball into the box following a corner and Boniface missed the chance to finish. Behind him was Jeremie Frimpong who fired the ball into the top corner at the far post (42’). Shortly after that came the half-time whistle.
Werder Bremen showed more energy after the restart and increasingly endeavoured to attack the Leverkusen goal. Striker Marvin Ducksch appeared to score for the hosts but there was an offside in the build-up – the score remained 2-0. The game was now more evenly balanced with the Werkself confronted by an ambitious Bremen side.
Alonso brought on fresh legs up front with Amine Adli replacing Boniface. And the Moroccan quickly proved to be a fortunate introduction: He set Alejandro Grimaldo through on the left on 76 minutes and the Spaniard headed to the opposition goal to score with a shot from a tight angle to the far post to make it 3-0 on 76 minutes. Grimaldo then helped set up Adli for a strike but referee Martin Petersen again ruled it offside. Werder were denied a consolation goal late on when substitute Justin Njinmah hit the bar. At the other end, Adam Hlozek and Hofmann also tried to score. However, there were no other goals and the away win was sealed.
Bayer 04 are next in action in the penultimate group match in the UEFA Europa League: The Werkself are away to Häcken on Thursday 30 November (kick-off: 21.00 CET). That is followed on Sunday 3 December (kick-off: 17.30 CET) by a home game against Borussia Dortmund on Bundesliga matchday 13.
Match stats:
Werder Bremen: Zetterer - Veljkovic, Friedl, Jung (Stark 82') - Weiser, Stage, Deman (Agu 56') - Schmid, Bittencourt (Njinmah 72') - Borré (Woltemade 72'), Ducksch
Bayer 04: Hradecky – Kossounou, Andrich, Hincapie – Frimpong (Tella 80'), Xhaka (Puerta 89'), Palacios, Grimaldo – Hofmann (Amiri 89'), Wirtz (Hlozek 80') – Boniface (Adli 72')
Goals: 0-1 Deman (own goal, 9’), 0-2 Frimpong (42’), 0-3 Grimaldo (76’)
Yellow cards: Bittencourt, Friedl, Deman - Grimaldo
Referee: Martin Petersen (Stuttgart)
Attendance: 42,100 (sold out) at the Weserstadion
The Bayer 04 women’s team secured a win in the friendly during the international break. Without a total of eight international players, coach Roberto Pätzold’s team defeated Bundesliga 2 side Borussia Mönchengladbach 3–1 at the Kurtekotten Training Centre, thanks to goals from Lobke Loonen (1’, penalty), Caroline Kehrer (41') and Valentina Mädl (66').
Show more
Bayer 04 will have to manage without striker Christian Kofane in the coming weeks. The 20-year-old sustained a muscle injury to his left thigh on international duty with the Cameroon national team during the recent international break. This will prevent him from playing in the upcoming Werkself matches.
Show more
FSV Mainz 05 went into the international break on the back of an away win at Borussia Mönchengladbach. Currently sixth in the table, the Rheinhessen side – who have been impressive on the road – now aim to continue their good start to the Bundesliga campaign at home when they face the Werkself on Saturday, 10 October (kick-off: 15:30 CEST). In terms of squad selection, Urs Fischer once again has more options at his disposal. Up front, the Mainz coach is likely to continue relying on what is currently the league’s most successful strike partnership. The lowdown on our next opponents.
Show more
Exciting experiences and exclusive insights into the Werkself and the BayArena awaited the young footballers from the BA04 Football Academy Guangzhou in China during their visit to the Rhineland this week. As well as taking part in a joint training session with the Bayer 04 Football Academy, the youngsters marvelled at the Bundesliga club’s stadium during a guided tour. The highlight of the visit was a private press conference with former Bayer 04 striker Stefan Kießling, during which he shared tips from his own career with the young players. On Saturday afternoon, 10 October, the group will round off their visit by supporting the Werkself in the away match in Mainz.
Show more
Fans ask, Carolin Simon answers: As part of Bayer 04’s second Ask Me Anything (AMA) session on Reddit, the Leverkusen captain took questions from the community. The full-back, who returned to the club this summer after ten years away, set aside an hour and a half for the Q&A session with fans, offering a very personal insight into, amongst other things, her daily life as a footballer and her role as captain, as well as her passion for Pokémon.
Show more
