Victory in the top match: suddenly a minor point. And also the impending ninth league title. After the 3-2 win at Wolfsburg, FC Bayern coach Hansi Flick announced he wanted to leave the club in the summer – and that became the number one subject in the sports media in Germany. Despite Flick's clear statement ("I'd like to get out of my contract at the end of the season.") it remains uncertain that it will happen in the end. "I've only expressed my wishes," said the winning coach. "I know I have a contract." And that runs to 2023.
If the departure becomes reality then a success story lasting a good one and a half years will come to the end in the summer. Flick initially took over as interim coach at Bayern in November 2019 and then went on to win everything there was to win. Champions of Germany, DFB Cup winners, Champions League winners, DFL and UEFA Super Cup winners and finally FIFA Club World Cup winners. In this season they can only win one title – and that is very likely since Saturday. After the early exit in the DFB Cup against Holstein Kiel and the narrow defeat against Paris St Germain in the Champions League quarter-finals, FC Bayern are fully on course to win their 31st league title. The Munich side made the most of RB Leipzig's draw on Friday night by winning away to the so impressive Wolfsburg team and they are now seven points ahead of second place. FCB could take a big step towards lifting the Bundesliga trophy against the Werkself. It could be a sort of farewell gift for Flick.
With all the discussions of recent days about FC Bayern the name of Robert Lewandowski almost appears to have been forgotten. The current World Player of the Year can still break the 40 goal record set by Gerd Müller in the 1971/72 season. That would very probably already have happened if the Pole had not suffered a ligament injury playing for Poland. It probably means he will also miss the game against the Werkself. Lewandowski is now back in training but it is thought he may well return to the squad at the weekend for the game against Mainz 05.
In addition to Lewandowski, a number of other regular starters are sidelined. It is unlikely that Niklas Süle (muscle problem) and Serge Gnabry (coronavirus) will play. It remains to be seen whether midfielder Leon Goretzka will have a role against the Werkself. The Germany international was an option for a place in the squad at Wolfsburg but a problem with his thigh ruled him out. The options in the centre of the FCB midfield are thereby strongly reduced as Corentin Tolisso is also sidelined after tearing a ligament in February, and Marc Roca recently missed out due to a knee injury. Flick will also probably have to manage without forward Douglas Costa against the Werkself as the match comes too soon after his foot injury.
The fact that Bayern almost went through against PSG and were able to win the away game at Wolfsburg without World Player of the Year Lewandowski and Co. says a lot about the quality of the team. The incredible penetration of the attack was primarily evident in the first half against the Wolves. Without Lewandowski, without Gnabry and also the recently rested Kingsley Coman, Bayern scored three goals against the second best defence in the league. Thomas Müller provided his seventeenth assist of the season and is chasing his own Bundesliga record set last year (21) while the 18-year-old Jamal Musiala netted his first Bundesliga brace and is now the youngest player in the history of the Bundesliga to score six goals in the top-flight. However: If Werkself gem Florian Wirtz scores another goal by the end of the season then Musiala would lose that record.
Bayern's very attractive style of play under Flick has often been at the expense the defence this term. In spite of having a goalkeeper called Manuel Neuer, who is still absolutely world-class, the league leaders have already conceded 38 goals putting them fifth in a league wide comparison – including behind the Werkself. Neuer has kept a clean sheet in just seven of 29 games – too few for the aspirations of the record champions. By comparison: Lukas Hradecky has one more clean sheet – although he has missed five games through injury.
After the fixtures at the weekend, everything points to FC Bayern lifting the Bundesliga title again. The unparalleled injury list, the Champions League exit and various distractions have not stopped the team in their tracks – and the Werkself are Bayern's last opponents from the top third of the table. Much more exciting than the question of "champions or not?" is what happens at FC Bayern Munich in the summer. Bayern fans will not run out of things to talk about in the next few weeks.
This Wednesday afternoon, the German Football Association (DFB) announced the exact kick-off times for Matchday 6 in the Google Pixel Women’s Bundesliga. According to the fixture list, the Bayer 04 Women’s home match against Werder Bremen will be played on Friday, 2 October, at 18:30 CEST.
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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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Loud cheers rang out five times at the BayArena on Saturday afternoon. Four of them were occasioned by the Bayer 04 fans celebrating the goals – some of which were beautifully worked – scored by a dominant Werkself, whilst the fifth eruption of black-and-red jubilation was prompted by the return of fans' favourite Moussa Diaby. “You can really feel the impact he had here,” said a delighted Managing Director Sports Simon Rolfes about the comeback afterwards. On the pitch, following the commanding 4–0 win over 1. FC Union Berlin, players, coaches and the media were in agreement: that was “the right response” (kicker magazine). The Werkself review of the first Bundesliga home game of the 2026/27 season.
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