The script is quickly explained: Bayer 04 dominated the match against the runaway league leaders in the Regional League North East as expected but found it very difficult to create clear-cut goalscoring opportunities. The Werkself did have one good chance just after the half-hour mark when Amine Adli broke into the opposition penalty area from the right and his powerful shot put one of the Jena goalposts through a stability test (31'). The introduction of Alejandro Grimaldo for the second half quickly paid dividends: A beautifully hit a cross from the left from the Spaniard was converted by Jonas Hofmann with a header to secure the winning goal (52'). However, Bayer 04 did not press home the advantage in search of the second goal and they were almost punished in added time when Hamza Muqaj hit the ball over the bar of the goal minded by Matej Kovar from close range (90+3'). The game ended in a 1-0 win for the Werkself. HERE is the match report.
The Werkself knew how to assess their uninspiring win: "None of us went to the limit today or anywhere near it. We made far too many simple mistakes. We have to be honest with ourselves to say that's not good enough," declared Robert Andrich. Goalscorer Jonas Hofmann stated that "as a team we didn't show the dominance that usually makes us stand out." The coach paid a compliment to the opponents: "It was a typical cup tie. Jena did well and fought to the end, it was tough for us," said Xabi Alonso before adding: "We have to work on certain things but we're through to the next round and that’s what counts."
"Leverkusen toiled through to the next round," was the headline in the Rheinische Post and they praised the hosts: "Jena fought with all their might to avoid defeat and they did come close to creating promising situations." The headline in the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger highlighted the scorer of the only goal: "Jonas Hofmann delivers win for Leverkusen." The report detailing the performance of the Werkself says: "Bayer 04 scarcely created an attack in dangerous areas. Mostly there was a lack of precision with the final pass." The efforts of the DFB Pokal holders are also reflected in the following headlines: "Lacklustre into the second round" (Kölnische Rundschau) and "Bayer trudge on" (kicker).
The scorer of the winning goal Jonas Hofmann could afford to smile – not just because he was named Man of the Match by the DFB. The 32-year-old was particularly happy with a late first in his professional career: "I knew straightaway it was my first headed goal. Of course, I'm happy that it not only works in training but that I have also finally begun to score with my head in a match." Three Leverkusen youth players were able to gain a lot of positive impressions from the DFB Pokal trip to Thüringia even though they did not play: Othniel Raterink, Francis Onyeka and Artem Stepanov from the Bayer 04 U19 team were in the Werkself matchday squad for the first time.
Although it was a very tight match, all the statistics were clearly in favour of last season's double winners. Bayer 04 had 16 to 6 shots on goal, 74% possession and they won 57% of challenges. There was also a clear lead in pass completion with 90% compared with the Jena’s 64%. The Regional League side did dominate in the category of fouls: The hosts committed 17 and Leverkusen six.
The Werkself and their supporters will definitely not be bored over the next few days. Today (Thursday) there is the Champions League draw from 18.00 CEST. That is followed by Bundesliga matchday two with RB Leipzig visiting the BayArena on Saturday, 31 August (kick-off: 18.30 CEST). The weekend is rounded off on Sunday (live broadcast on ZDF from 17.10 CEST) at the Football Museum in Dortmund with the draw for the second round ties in the DFB Pokal with the games to be played on 29 and 30 October.
Werkself TV shows highlights of the 2-0 win at Olympiacos in the first leg of the play-offs of the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 league...
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The Werkself beat Olympiacos 2-0 in the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League play-off first leg to claim a crucial victory in the Greek capital. After a focused first-half display with a number of presentable chances, Patrik Schick crowned a textbook counter to hand the Werkself the lead on the hour (60’). The Czech rounded off his brace when he headed in from a corner just 144 seconds later. Bayer 04 maintained their lead with aplomb to achieve a good position for the return leg in Leverkusen.
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Bayer 04 and Olympiacos had only met twice before the current UEFA Champions campaign. After the encounter on Matchday 7 of this season’s league phase, the Werkself travel to face the Greek side for the second time in just four weeks for the knockout play-off first leg. The Black and Reds were dominant for large spells in mid-January but lost 2-0 after missing a number of presentable chances. The Werkself aim to do better on Wednesday night to “seize the chance for revenge,” as managing director sport Simon Rolfes put it. Here’s all you need to know ahead of the game in our matchday news.
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A bitter end to the fifth showdown of the 2025/26 VBL Club Championship as the #B04eSports team failed to take any points in the three remaining matches of the preliminary online round of the fifth and final showdown, missing out on the offline round. They can no longer take points in the overall table. Bayer 04 slipped out on the top eight, so direct participation in the final event for the German Club Championship is no longer possible, with Bayer 04 having to contest the play-offs.
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