Head coach Xabi Alonso made six changes to his starting XI compared with the 1-0 home win against Mainz 05 in the week and that included the return of the keeper Lukas Hradecky and key defender Jonathan Tah. Martin Terrier also started but, shortly after providing an impressive cross to Patrik Schick on five minutes, the Frenchman had to be substituted due to injury (8'). He was replaced by Piero Hincapie.
The visitors from the Lower Rhine were well organised in defence and made it difficult for the Werkself to break into their penalty area. Robert Andrich tried a long-range effort on 20 minutes and Schick a header from a cross five minutes later. It was just after the half-hour mark that Arthur won the ball and Granit Xhaka played a through ball for Florian Wirtz to leave Ko Itakura standing before slotting the ball into the bottom right-hand corner of the net to open the scoring (32'). 1-0 was the score at half-time.
The first chance after the restart fell to Alejandro Grimaldo in a counter-attack but the BMG keeper Moritz Nicolas was able to make the save (55'). Five minutes later, Grimaldo tried to cross but the ball hit the hand of Julian Weigl in the penalty area and referee Harm Osmers pointed to the spot. Wirtz calmly converted the penalty to seal his brace and make it 2-0 (62’). The Werkself then eased off somewhat and focused on isolated attacks – as on 75 minutes. Hincapie played a great long ball to Wirtz. The latter flicked the ball on to Schick leaving the Czech with a tap-in to make it 3-0 with his twelfth goal of the season. In the closing stages, Jonas Hofmann came off the bench to make his first appearance in the new year and Tim Kleindienst netted a consolation goal for the visitors at 3-1 (90+1'). The final whistle came shortly after that and the Werkself celebrated an eleventh win in succession with their fans.
Bayer 04 are next in action in the Champions League. The Werkself are away to top Spanish side Atletico Madrid on Matchday 7 in the league phase. The match on Tuesday, 21 January, kicks off at 21.00 CET. That is followed by another top game on the road four days later, this time in the Bundesliga, away to RB Leipzig.
Match stats:
Bayer 04: Hradecky - Arthur, Tah, Tapsoba - Tella (Frimpong 63'), Xhaka (Palacios 81'), Andrich, Grimaldo (Garcia 81') - Wirtz (Hofmann 81'), Terrier (Hincapie 8’) - Schick
Borussia Mönchengladbach: Nicolas - Lainer, Itakura, Elvedi, Ullrich (Netz 75') - Reitz (Chiarodia 81’), Weigl, Sander (Fukuda 87’) - Cvancara (Plea 75'), Kleindienst, Hack (Stöger 75')
Goals: 1-0 Wirtz (32’), 2-0 Wirtz (62’ pen.), 3-0 Schick (74’), 3-1 Kleindienst (90+1’)
Yellow cards: Cvancara, Lainer
Referee: Harm Osmers (Hannover)
Attendance: 30,210 (sold out) at the BayArena
Fun, games and promising talent: At the fourth Bayer 04 Junior Girls’ Talent Day at the Kurtekotten training centre, 90 football-mad girls had the chance to put themselves forward for the Werkself youth teams. During a 90-minute training session, children born between 2011 and 2019 had the chance to demonstrate their skills.
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Despite the international break, numerous Werkself fans turned up at the BayArena on Saturday 3 October. The occasion: Bayer 04, together with Bayer Vital and main sponsor BarmeniaGothaer, organised a Health Day. In the stadium’s Premium Lounge, guests listened to fascinating talks on the subject of cancer, featuring, amongst others, Bayer 04 record appearance holder Rüdiger Vollborn and former Werkself player Hans Sarpei. Afterwards, young and old alike enjoyed interactive stations such as a grip strength test and eye pupil test.
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In issue #56 of Werkself Magazine, Afonso Moreira offers some interesting insights into his home country, Portugal, as part of the ‘Sag mal’ (Tell me) feature. Among other things, the 21-year-old talks about his favourite places in the country on the Iberian Peninsula, the local cuisine and music, as well as heroes and historical figures beyond the world of football. ‘Sag mal’ with Afonso Moreira!
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Exciting exhibitions, stimulating talk, and a great response: as part of the 22nd Leverkusen Kunstnacht (Art Night), Bismarckstraße also became an art promenade on Friday evening. Stadioneck and Schwadbud made their debut at the traditional event, whilst the Lev-Szene 86 clubhouse on Konrad-Adenauer-Platz was taking part for the third time. In Schlebusch, too, there was art on display with links to Bayer 04. Football wasn’t always the main focus, however.
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