
The 49-year-old Argentinian highlighted the strengths of the Werkself: "They are a team with very good players, they play very attacking and fast football." However, those qualities were not decisive in the first meeting: Alvaro Morata came off the bench to score the only goal of the game on 78 minutes for the Spanish side with a header.
The 27-year-old could well be in the starting line-up with his four goals in the last four games as could central defender Mario Hermoso, who said at the press conference: "We want to play and we’ll treat the match as if it's a final." And moving the pre-match training session from the BayArena to the Ulrich Haberland Stadium, due to it being the fourth home match in twelve days, was not a negative factor for the Madrid side. "We've heard we won't be able to train in the stadium tonight. But that doesn't bother us. Our mentality is good," said the 24-year-old summer signing Hermoso, who played for Espanyol last season.
Simeone looked at an aspect of the game that has occupied the Werkself for several matches: conversion of chances. "I can explain one situation after another to you as reasons why we haven't scored. But what we are really missing is clinical finishing," declared the Argentinian.

The Werkself's training camp in Weimarer Land all in one place: in our daily blog you'll find all the insights and updates from the day. Day three (Tuesday 4 August) begins with a thorough open session on the pitch. After lunch, some players have media engagements at the team hotel, and then the team come together for a barbecue in the evening.
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Nine matches against teams from nine countries, two penalty shoot-outs won, and encounters that went far beyond football: As with last year, the Inklusionswerkself enjoyed an extraordinary week at the Genuine Cup 2026 in Houston, USA, and made memories that will last a lifetime. This year, the Leverkusen side took part as Germany’s official representatives and, accordingly, took to the pitch in Germany kit. Together with 53 teams from 53 nations, the Black and Reds once again sent a powerful message of inclusion and participation – and also impressed on the pitch by winning their group.
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The Werkself training camp in the Weimarer Land all in one place: in our daily blog, you’ll find all the insights and updates from the day. The programme for day two (Monday, 3 August) centres on two training sessions – one in the morning (open to the public) and one in the early evening (behind closed doors) – at the nearby training grounds. In the afternoon, fans can look forward to a big fan meet-up with club legend Paulo Sergio at Schloss Blankenhain.
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“Say hello to the Werkself!” – With this request, Loïc Bade gathers everybody in front of his GoPro: Including team-mates like Ibrahim Maza, Lucas Vázquez, Aleix Garcia and Ernest Poku, or Bayer 04 CEO Fernando Carro, head coach Carles Martínez, or even the reception team at the Spa & GolfResort Weimarer Land. In between, there are glimpses of the pool area and the Werkself’s team quarters. Enjoy!
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