Focused and yet relaxed; that was how Korkut looked on the day before his Champions League debut in the dugout. No sign of excitement. "I experienced a lot as a player and still have good memories of the stadium," he explained in fluent Spanish with the local journalist hanging on his every word – also as Korkut talked about the position after the 4-2 defeat for the Werkself in the first leg: "We are the underdogs but we want to use every minute to turn it round."
Personnel position at Bayer 04
The new head coach will be missing several regular players. In addition to Hakan Calhanoglu (CAS ban) and suspended Benjamin Henrichs, the injured Lars Bender (ankle), Ömer Toprak (knee), Jonathan Tah (groin) and Stefan Kießling (hip) are all ruled out. In addition, the youngster Kai Havertz has remained at home as he has important exams ahead of his A-levels at the Landrat Lucas Grammar School.
Korkut is still looking for a positive result in spite of all the absentees: "We are Bayer 04 and always have a strong team. I have full confidence in every individual player." The new Werkself head coach is well aware that it won't be easy to score goals against the Atlético defence and also that it needs at least three goals on Wednesday to progress to the Champions League quarter-finals. "But we want to do all we can to achieve that and that's how we'll approach the game. And then we'll see how the game turns out."
Korkut's second clash with Simeone
He faced his opposite number Diego Simeone at the Estadio Vicente Calderon as a player in 2004. At that time, Simeone was playing for the Rojiblancos and Korkut for Espanyol. In the 2-0 win for Atlético back then, a fresh-faced Fernando Torres (El Nino) scored both goals. It remains to be seen whether he will start for Simeone on Wednesday. In a league match against La Corunna (1-1) a week and a half ago he was knocked unconscious and swallowed his tongue. This week Torres returned to full training. Filipe Luis and stalwart Gabi are both sidelined after picking up a third yellow card in the first leg.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen have extended Abdoulaye Faye’s contract by a further year to 30 June 2031. During the 2026/27 season, the talented defender will play for Celta Vigo on loan without an option to buy. The 21-year-old Senegalese is set to feature in La Liga and the UEFA Europa League with last season’s sixth-placed side in Spain.
Show more
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. The programme on day one (Sunday 2 August) includes a media round with managing director sport Simon Rolfes, free time for the team after the friendly against Rot-Weiss Essen and before an intensive week of training begins, as well as a coffee get-together where CEO Fernando Carro and Rolfes met around 100 fans in the afternoon.
Show more
Bayer 04 Leverkusen have agreed Kerim Alajbegovic’s transfer to Italian record champions Juventus. The club brought the 18-year-old attacking player back to Leverkusen this summer via a buy-back option, following a season at Red Bull Salzburg. Until his move to Austria, the Bosnia international had been playing for Bayer 04’s Under-19s.
Show more
A warm welcome to the Weimarer Land, Bayer 04! The Werkself moved into their accommodation for this year’s training camp on Saturday evening. In Blankenhain, Thuringia, head coach Carles Martínez’s team have a programme of gruelling training sessions – several of which will be open to fans – and team-building activities lined up for the next six days. We’ll be following the Werkself up close and providing you with exclusive insights, quotes, photos and videos from the training camp.
Show more
With 22 days to go until the start of the Bundesliga campaign, the Bayer 04 Women’s team have gained a fresh boost of confidence. In a friendly against Belgian top-flight side KRC Genk on Saturday afternoon, coach Roberto Pätzold’s team secured a 1–0 win. Lobke Loonen (20’) scored the winner for the Black and Reds at the Kurtekotten training centre.
Show more
