The first Bundesliga fixture of 2025 took less than a minute to spark to life inside a sold-out Signal Iduna Park, as Nathan Tella hammered the ball into the back of the Dortmund net after just 25 seconds. Patrik Schick then doubled the advantage with only eight minutes on the clock. The hosts got one back through Jamie Gittens shortly after, but Schick restored the two-goal cushion after 19 minutes as the Werkself took a 3-1 lead into half-time. Things were calmer after the restart until Schick was denied a hat-trick by Gregor Kobel. The game then burst back to life when referee Tobias Stieler awarded a penalty to Dortmund on review after Edmond Tapsoba tangled with Julien Duranville, which Serhou Guirassy put away to bring it back to 3-2 with just over 10 minutes remaining. The champions saw it out, though, to chalk up their first three points of the new year. You can read the full match report HERE.
“I’m ready to score at any time. It makes me proud when I can help the team with my goals,” said Schick in the aftermath. Asked further about Dortmund’s defensive absences, the Czech striker added: “It doesn’t matter who plays or doesn’t for the opposition. We got a clear plan from the coach for the game and followed it. Defending so well against such a good team in this stadium is hugely important. We’ll take that into the next games.”
Granit Xhaka also addressed the state of play at the top of the table: “We’re only looking at ourselves. When we do our job with diligence, then we can achieve a lot.” The Swiss midfielder said of the display in Dortmund: “It was a performance on the whole today that meant we deserved all three points. There are easier opponents to start off than Borussia Dortmund away. What matters is the three points. They help us and we’re happy to have them.”
Head coach Xabi Alonso said of the evening: “I’m happy with the win and also the performance. It was a very serious performance by us. It was important for our development because we want to continue down our path and so are pleased with this positive start to the new year.”
Bild ran with the headline “Bayer only a point behind Bayern now!” and wrote about a “great start to the new Bundesliga year”. The Express summarised the game by saying, “Bayer overpower BVB but still left sweating on result”. In kicker they said, “Leverkusen outfox Dortmund’s makeshift defence in rapid start to new year”.
Schick has carried his excellent form into the new year. He’s got six goals in the last 90 minutes he’s been on the pitch in the Bundesliga and is now up to 11 league goals for the campaign – all scored across his last six appearances. No other player has more than five since the start of Matchday 10. Only Harry Kane (14) and Omar Marmoush (13) remain ahead of the Leverkusen striker in the division’s scoring chart for 2024/25.
Jeremie Frimpong is also in impressive form, especially away from home, where he has a goal and two assists across his last three Bundesliga outings on the road. The Dutch wide man now has two goals and five assists to his name in the league this season, plus four provisions in six Champions League games.
The Werkself have scored a league-high eight goals in the first 15 minutes of Bundesliga games this season. The Dortmund game was also the first time since March 2000’s record 9-1 win in Ulm that Leverkusen scored three times in the first 19 minutes of an away game in the league.
On top of that, Tella’s finish after just 25 seconds was the quickest Bayer 04 have netted in the Bundesliga since August 2014 when Karim Bellarabi – also in Dortmund – scored the joint-fastest goal in the league’s history after nine seconds.
The Werkself now have two home games in the Bundesliga this coming week. Mainz are the first visitors to the BayArena for a midweek round of fixtures on Tuesday (8.30pm CET). Borussia Mönchengladbach then come to Leverkusen on Saturday (6.30pm).
After eight years in the youth set-up at Bayer 04 Leverkusen, Benjamin Adam is leaving the club. The 35-year-old, who most recently coached the Leverkusen U17s, will take charge of the Hansa Rostock U19 team next season.
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There was a successful end to the women's internationals with Werkself players Carlotta Wamser and Cornelia Kramer qualifying for the 2027 World Cup finals in Brazil. A third Leverkusen player is still in with a chance of joining them. The Germany U23 players also experienced success in their last two international friendlies of the season.
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Traveling to North America for the World Cup this summer to see your favorite Bayer 04 players? Here’s a quick cheat sheet with thumbnail portraits and insider tips for each city from a local expert, so you can make the most of your visit and activities beyond the game!
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A fresh look for the BayArena: The Bayer 04 stadium will have new seating in the form of folding seats for the 2026/27 campaign that will ensure significantly improved seating comfort and simplified movement within the rows of seats. As part of routine replacement after 17 years, fans of the Werkself were able to purchase the existing seats, used to witness the first German league title in the club's history. In addition, a large proportion of the seats will be donated to charitable projects, primarily in the local region. Bayer 04 fans can look forward to new, functional folding seats for the season opener at the beginning of August - still in the club colours of black and red, of course. A glimpse at the BayArena during the refurbishment.
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