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.
A special visit to the BayArena: 222 members from volunteer fire brigades in Leverkusen, the Rheinisch-Bergisch district and the Oberbergisch district watched the Werkself’s 2–0 home win over Slovenian champions NK Celje live in the stadium. Bayer 04 had invited them to the 2026/27 Europa League opener as a thank-you for their tremendous dedication. They watched the match together in Block F4.
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The Bayer 04 U19s have extended their winning run with a fifth consecutive victory on Matchday 5 of the DFB Youth League’s preliminary round. Coach Patrick Greveraars’ side secured a 3–2 (2–1) win in their match against second-placed FC Viktoria Köln, with Burak Kir and Nebe Domnic scoring for the hosts in the first half before captain Ben Hawighorst found the net after the break.
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Bayer 04 will have to manage without defender Guéla Doué for the time being. The Ivory Coast international sustained a muscle injury to his right calf during the final Werkself training session yesterday ahead of the Europa League clash with Slovenian champions NK Celje.
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For the first time since reaching the final against AS Roma (2–2, first leg 2–0) in May 2024, Bayer 04 are playing another home match in the UEFA Europa League – and they will be wearing their new European kit. On Wednesday 16 September (kick-off: 21:00 CEST), the BayArena will welcome Slovenian champions NK Celje, who appointed a new coach this week following a mixed start to the season. Under the slogan “40 Years Across Europe. Still Creating History.”, the Black and Reds now aim to add the next chapter to their European history, which has seen so much success in recent years. Bayer 04 fans can follow the match on free-to-air TV on RTL, as well as on Sky and Werkself Radio. The matchday news.
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European football returns to the BayArena: Bayer 04 host Slovenian champions NK Celje on matchday 1 in the group stage of the 2026/27 UEFA Europa League. Ahead of the match on Wednesday 16 September (kick-off: 21:00 CEST), head coach Carles Martínez and midfielder Aleix Garcia spoke at the pre-match press conference. The focus was primarily on the great anticipation surrounding the competition and the clear objectives for it – and, given the circumstances, on a last-minute change to the opposition line-up.
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