The Bild headline reads, ‘Double Alario deals with Augsburg’ and goes on to report: “Really impressive: Alario scores in his third game on the bounce!” The tabloid rightly awards the 28-year-old top marks. The performances of Edmond Tapsoba and Leon Bailey also received recognition.
“Man of the Match with two goals was Lucas Alario. In the absence of star new signing Patrik Schick, the Argentinian again demonstrated his qualities and took the Werkself up to fourth place,” reports the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger. The penalty for handball leading to the 1-0 lead (16’) was converted by Alario with “power and accuracy.” The central striker put the Werkself back in front on 74 minutes – with his fourth goal in the last three games.
The Kölnische Rundschau highlights the football philosophy of the former Leverkusen and now FCA coach: “Heiko Herrlich brought a veritable plan with him to his former stomping ground. Herrlich knows from his time under the Bayer Cross what makes Leverkusen tick and he asked his team to press high and be aggressive from the start. The hosts shouldn’t have any time to do anything.” The plan worked out “but the Werkself defence stood firm. The mature defensive performance can be seen as a new achievement early on in the season.”
After the third win in succession, the Express describes a “perfect week” – both for Bayer 04 and Alario. “The matchwinner secures the home win – and a sweet victory for Bosz against his predecessor.”
Looking at the history of the Augsburg team is covered in the report by the Rheinische Post. FCA have already beaten Munich and Dortmund since promotion to the top flight in 2011 and they have even played in the Europa League. “The Bavarian Swabians have not been able to beat Bayer Leverkusen up to now.” Twelve defeats and six draws – a modest return ahead of the game for Augsburg. The first win against the Werkself remained elusive on Monday night. The assessment of the newspaper: “Bayer Leverkusen remain Augsburg’s bogey team.”
Bayer 04 have fond memories of their encounters with Heidenheim, including a resounding 6-0 win in the reverse fixture. Kasper Hjulmand’s side would very much like to produce a similarly clinical display as they now head to the Voith-Arena for Matchday 27 on Saturday (15:30 CET). But they come up against a team fighting for their Bundesliga lives at the bottom of the table, 10 points adrift of safety with time running out. Here’s all you need to know ahead of the game in our matchday news.
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The Bayer 04 Women welcome FC Carl Zeiss Jena to the Ulrich Haberland Stadium on Sunday night in a white retro look - and in a unique Bayer 04 ‘50 Years of Fan Clubs’ special edition jersey. In sporting terms, head coach Roberto Pätzold's team will face the Bundesliga's bottom team at 18:30 CET looking to keep their chances of third place in the table alive with six games left to play.
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Bayer 04 return to Bundesliga action this weekend. Following their elimination in the Round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League, the Werkself are away to FC Heidenheim 1846 on Saturday, 21 March (kick-off: 15:30 CET) on Bundesliga matchday 27. Ahead of the clash in the eastern Swabian Alps, head coach Kasper Hjulmand spoke about the importance of the fixture and the chances of qualifying for the Champions League next term.
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A quick look at the table shows the situation at FC Heidenheim is serious. The Bundesliga bottom club are already ten points behind the play-off spot with their backs to the wall in sporting terms. With eight games left to play, avoiding relegation appears to be a mission impossible. Nevertheless, they are far from flying the white flag at the Schlossberg ahead of the clash with the Werkself this Saturday, 21 March (kick-off: 15:30 CET). The lowdown on our next opponents.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen will have to manage without the two strikers in the immediate future. Caroline Kehrer suffered a torn ligament in her right knee and Amy Wrigge tore her cruciate ligament.
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