Ahead of the clash with the already safe Mainz, the Dutchman declared: "We don't need to think about what's happening on the pitch at Gladbach. We have to win our game. And then we'll see if that's enough in the end."
In the best-case scenario, the Werkself will be happy to repeat the drama of the final matchday of the 2018/19 league campaign: Back then, the Black and Reds qualified for the Champions League with an emphatic 5-1 win against Hertha Berlin and a 2-0 defeat for Gladbach against Borussia Dortmund. "We showed then what is possible," said Bosz.
Good news: Ahead of the game with Mainz, the 56-year-old coach can select his team from his whole squad with the exception of Aleksandar Dragovic who is currently serving a one-match ban. Karim Bellarabi and captain Lars Bender returned to training with the team on Friday following injury. Bosz explained: "We'll see who plays tomorrow. Our only interest is definitely winning the match."
The team coached by Achim Beierlorzer have already secured their top-flight status with two recent wins at Dortmund (2-0) and fellow relegation candidates Werder Bremen (3-1). Bosz does not believe Mainz will let the season end with a whimper. The Werkself coach commenting on tomorrow's opponents: "They played very well against us in our narrow win earlier in the season (1-0 ed.). Mainz have some interesting players and a good team."
Match information:
Broadcasters: Sky and Werkself Radio (bayer04.de)
Referee: The referee will be announced on the day of the game


In their third friendly of this pre-season, Bayer 04 played on home soil for the first time – and won there too! The Werkself claimed a comfortable 4-0 victory against Belgian top-flight side KRC Genk at the Ulrich-Haberland-Stadion. Jeanuel Belocian (9’) and Nathan Tella (42’) gave a dominant Leverkusen a 2-0 lead at the break, which Afonso Moreira (51’) and Christian Kofane (53’) doubled after the break. Among the many second-half substitutions was Patrik Schick, who made his first friendly appearance of the summer.
Show more
The Werkself are finally back. On Saturday 8 August, Bayer 04 kick off the 2026/27 campaign with their opening match. But there’s far more than just a double-header in store for Werkself supporters. True to the motto ‘One day. Two teams. One club’, the BayArena and the Ulrich Haberland Stadium will be transformed into a world of excitement.
Show more
The Werkself continue their 2026/27 pre-season preparations with their third friendly against Belgian top-flight side KRC Genk at the Ulrich-Haberland-Stadion on Wednesday 29 July (kick-off 15:00 CEST). Werkself-TV is broadcasting the match live and in full in a stream from 14:50 CEST...

After the children from the Bayer 04 Football Academy grilled Janis Blaswich and Simeon Rapsch last week, another group of 20 young Werkself fans gathered at the BayArena press conference room on Tuesday afternoon, 28 July . This time, the kids directed their questions at Tim Oermann and Jonah Berghoff. Defender Oermann raved about his school days, whilst talented midfielder Berghoff revealed to the young footballers, amongst other things, who his favourite player is – and he is also at Bayer 04. To round things off, the pair naturally obliged with all requests for autographs and selfies.
Show more
Bayer 04 are back on the pitch. Following the first training sessions, the Werkself play the first pre-season friendly on Saturday, July 18. The match against Oberliga club Sportfreunde Baumberg kicks off at 15:30 CEST in Monheim am Rhein. Fans unable to attend the match can watch head coach Carles Martínez’s first game in charge for free via a livestream at bayer04.de and on the Bayer 04 app, as well as on Werkself.tv (exclusively for members). Just log on and watch the games live. All the other Werkself preseason friendlies leading up to the 2026/27 season will also be streamed live for free.
Show more