A "rough ride and an emotional rollercoaster," was the view of the Bayer 04 head coach Gerardo Seoane. The Werkself took an early lead on 11 minutes with a placed shot from the edge of the box by Charles Aránguiz. Atalanta turned the game round in the first half within two minutes with goals from Ruslan Malinovskyi and Luis Muriel. The Colombia international doubled his tally after the restart to put his team 3-1 up. Bayer 04 had goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky to thank that the deficit was not bigger. The Moussa Diaby goal to make it 3-2 rounded off a highly intense match.
Following the exhausting match against the Werkself, the Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini rotated his team last weekend in a 0-0 draw with Genoa in the league. The coach made six changes to his starting line-up. Marco Sportiello made his second league appearance of the season in goal in place of the number one Juan Musso. Giorgio Scalvini and José Luis Palomino came into central defence for Rafael Tolói and Mehri Demiral. Joakim Maehle, Matteo Pessina and Mario Pasalic started in midfield with the Dutch players Marten de Roon and Hans Hateboer plus the Swiss Remo Freuler on the subs bench.
Luis Muriel had the best chance in the first half in a tough game against the side next to bottom in Serie A but he hit the post. In the second half, Pasalic put a shot over the bar from a promising position after impressive work from Teun Koopmeiners. Otherwise, Atalanta were disappointing in front of their own crowd for much of the game. "It's a fair result," said coach Gasperini after the game. "Perhaps we had one more chances than our opponents but they succeeded in disrupting our game and keeping us busy. It was a hard-fought game with lots of battling but little flow. Genoa make life difficult for every opponent." The coach was particularly happy with the development of his midfield player Teun Koopmeiners: "He's a very strong and complete player, has good ball control, good physique and a good passing game."
The one point against Genoa does not really help 'La Dea' in the race for a Champions League spot. They are currently eight points behind Juventus in fourth place albeit with Atalanta having a game in hand.
Gasperini will again rotate in several positions for Thursday night's match at Leverkusen. Musso will be back in goal, captain Tolói in defence and regular starters like de Roon und Freulerback in the midfield. Malinovskyi and Muriel are established up front with Duvan Zapata and Josip Ilicic still sidelined.
"It's all to play for in the second leg and it will be a tight game," said Bayer 04 coach Gerardo Seoane after the game in Bergamo. The Werkself have to win and that will not be an easy task even at home against the team from Lombardy who have the third best away record in Serie A. The away goals rule no longer applies this season. A 1-0 or 2-1 win for the Werkself would lead to extra time.
Following the international break, the Bayer 04 women’s team face their next head-to-head clash in the race for a top spot in the Bundesliga. In Saturday’s home match (14:00 CEST), the fourth-placed side host third-placed Eintracht Frankfurt at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium. Head coach Roberto Pätzold is well aware of the great opportunity this presents for his team.
Show more
Bayer 04 make their first trip to Poland for over 30 years as they face Lech Poznan on Matchday 2 of the league phase in the 2026/27 UEFA Europa League. The game kicks off at 18:45 CEST on Thursday, but the team will be preparing for the action on Wednesday with training, travel and pre-match press conferences. We’ll bring you all the latest news here…
Show more
Bayer 04 remain unbeaten in the 2026/27 UEFA Europa League. After winning the opener against NK Celje, the Werkself followed that up on Thursday night with a 4–0 win away at the Polish champions Lech Poznan. Patrik Schick, who came on as a substitute early in the game, scored twice from the penalty spot, and Malik Tillman also found the back of the net before half-time. The second half was a more subdued affair, with Ibrahim Maza scoring late on to seal the final 4-0 scoreline.
Show more
Since 2023, Bayer 04 has been organising regular free goalkeeping coach training sessions at the BayArena. As in previous years, the event attracted enormous interest in mid-October 2026. Around 140 participants – mostly goalkeeping coaches from the region, but also team and academy coaches as well as association staff – came to the Werkself stadium to gain expert knowledge on the subject of zonal marking. Through a theoretical keynote presentation and a practical session on the pitch, the participants gained insights into goalkeeping and goalkeeper training at Bayer 04.
Show more
