Head coach Xabi Alonso made two changes to his team that started last week’s 3-0 at home to Bayern Munich. Frimpong and Patrik Schick were restored to the side in place of Edmond Tapsoba and Nathan Tella. Africa Cup of Nations winner Odilon Kossounou was among the subs for the first time this year, while Piero Hincapie made his 100th appearance for Bayer 04.
Leverkusen had the first attempt of the game at the Voith-Arena as Wirtz tested Kevin Müller before the visitors began to dominate play. Frimpong came close not long after but narrowly missed an Alejandro Grimaldo cross from the left.
The hosts were quick to close down space but had trouble picking up Wirtz, who dribbled past three red shirts on the touchline before seeing his attempted cutback intercepted. Wirtz then played in Schick, but he was crowded out by two Heidenheim defenders as he tried to burst into the penalty area. Kleindienst had the promoted side’s first shot of the afternoon after 36 minutes. With the game looking like being goalless at the break, Frimpong then popped up at the first post two minutes into added time to turn in Adli’s cross for the lead and his seventh goal of the campaign.
The Werkself continued on the front foot after the restart. Frimpong was again busy in attack and smashed an effort just over the bar from 20 yards. It was past the hour mark when Lukas Hradecky was called into action to deny Nikola Dovedan. Frimpong then came even closer to a second but flashed his shot only inches wide of the far post on the angle. Heidenheim started to find their groove and Hradecky was again forced to save from Benedikt Gimber. Borja Iglesias came on for Schick, but once more it was Frimpong involved up front. This time the Dutchman put a Grimaldo delivery into the stands.
Wirtz than rattled the Heidenheim crossbar with a thunderous effort after a one-two with Iglesias. But the second goal did finally come on 81 minutes when Wirtz slipped through Adli, who rounded Müller to make it 2-0. It wasn’t over there, though, as Kleindienst got one back with a header three minutes before the end. However, the Werkself saw out the game to move eight points clear at the top, at least overnight, and make it 32 matches unbeaten in 2023/24.
Bayer 04 are next in action on Friday, 23 February when Mainz visit the BayArena in the Bundesliga.
Match stats:
Heidenheim: Müller – Traoré, Mainka, Gimber (Pieringer 82'), Föhrenbach – Maloney, Schöppner (Sessa 63') – Dinkci (Busch 76'), Beck (Dovedan 46'), Beste (Pick 76') – Kleindienst
Bayer 04: Hradecky – Stanisic, Tah, Hincapie – Frimpong (Tapsoba 89'), Andrich, Xhaka, Grimaldo – Adli (Tella 89'), Schick (Iglesias 74'), Wirtz (Hofmann 89')
Goals: 0-1 Frimpong (45'+2), 0-2 Adli (81'), 1-2 Kleindienst (87')
Referee: Harm Osmers (Hanover)
Yellow cards: Föhrenbach, Gimber – Andrich
Attendance: 15,000 at the Voith-Arena (sold out)
High spirits and previously untold stories: Around 100 Bayer 04 fans packed the Schwadbud fan pub in the east stand of the BayArena on Thursday evening to be there in person for the first instalment of the new series of events entitled “Rudi lädt ein” (Rudi invites you). They listened intently as long-serving Werkself players Gonzalo Castro and Stefan Kießling chatted with record appearance-maker Rüdiger Vollborn and presenter and stadium announcer Tobias Ufer about their many years together at the club, shared amusing anecdotes and revealed dressing room secrets. Anyone who missed the premiere can already look forward to the second instalment – on 12 May, Rudi will be testing the expert knowledge of Bayer 04 fans during a quiz night.
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The Bundesliga home game against VfL Wolfsburg in the first half of the season was one of those classic ‘days to forget’ for Bayer 04 Women. It started with goalkeeper Charlotte Voll being shown a red card in the first minute of the game, and following a further sending-off, coach Roberto Pätzold's 9-women side ended up losing 5-1 to last season's runners-up. At 18.30 CET on Sunday, they'll have the chance to exact revenge at the AOK Stadium - and pick up valuable points in the race for third place.
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Sofie Zdebel is up for the Goal of the Month award for February on ARD-Sportschau. Fans have until 21 March (19:00 CET) to vote for the Germany U23 international's volley to make it 2-0 in the Bayer 04 Women's derby against FC Köln (2-1).
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen are further expanding their partner network: The feed manufacturer PerNaturam is an official sponsor of the Bayer 04 Womens team. The partnership opens up a wide range of opportunities for the company to position its brand in the Bundesliga environment.
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Do you dream of wearing the Bayer cross on your chest? To play in black and red like your role models Loreen Bender, Cornelia Kramer, Kristin Kögel and co. from the Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga? Then take your chance now! Our female youth teams are once again on the lookout for new talent. That's why Bayer 04 are organising a talent day on 12 April 2026 for the first time this year with trials for female juniors.
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