Slavia Prague come to the BayArena for the final game in the group full of confidence. The team under Jindrich Trpisovsky secured a 3-0 win in the top match in the Czech Republic on Sunday night in the derby against city rivals Sparta who are also Slavia’s main pursuers in the league. A brace from the 19-year-old winger Abdallah Sima, just a substitute in the previous game against Bayer 04, put his team on course for victory before half-time with Ondrej Lingr netting the third goal in the second half. "The lads produced a great performance," declared a happy coach Trpisovsky.
The victory has extended Slavia’s lead over Sparta to five points and – like Bayer 04 in Germany – they are unbeaten this season with an outstanding goal difference of 30 for and just three against. The same applies in the Europa League since the 1-0 win against the Werkself at the end of October with the Czech Republic side clocking up wins against Nice (3-2, 3-1) and Hapoel Be'er Sheva (3-0) and they are still top of the table. Trpisovsky will have to manage without Tomas Malinsky on Thursday. The winger, who started in the previous match against Bayer 04 and also made his debut for the Czech Republic this season, is out of action with a muscle injury. However, they have a first class replacement: Since Malinsky's injury, the Senegalese Sima, who was in the second team until the end of September, is playing on the right wing – where he has not only scored a brace in the derby but also at least one goal in each of Slavia’s last six games including all three Europa League ties. The Werkself will definitely have to keep an eye out for this whizz-kid.
Rüdiger Vollborn has been at the club for 40 years, he holds the record number of Bundesliga appearances for the club (401) and is the only Bayer 04 player to have won both the UEFA Cup (1988) and the DFB Pokal (1993). And the Berliner stayed with the Werkself after ending his impressive playing career working as a goalkeeping coach for the following nine years. Vollborn now works under the Bayer Cross as a fan liaison officer and club archivist. Since February 2021, the personal Black and Red lexicon takes Werkself fans under the heading of 'Rudi recounts...' on a brief trip through the history of Bayer 04 every month…
Show more
Fans at the BayArena got to enjoy a spectacle on Wednesday as the Werkself came from behind to beat Nürnberg 5-2 in the DFB Pokal. Now with the sixth home game of the season, can Bayer 04 maintain their perfect record in Leverkusen as VfB Stuttgart come to town in the Bundesliga on Saturday (15:30 CET)? The visitors have had issues domestically this term, sitting in 15th place, although they have had much better results in the UEFA Champions League. Here’s all you need to know ahead of the Matchday 8 encounter…
Show more
Three days after the spectacular comeback in the DFB Pokal tie against FC Nürnberg (5–2), the Werkself face their next challenge in the Bundesliga. On Saturday, 31 October (kick-off: 15:30 CET), Bayer 04 host VfB Stuttgart, currently 15th in the table, at the BayArena. Ahead of the match, Carles Martínez spoke, amongst other things, about important factors in preparing for this next game given a tight fixture list.
Show more
Despite VfB Stuttgart performing well in the Champions League, they are facing a difficult spell early on in the Bundesliga. Three days after their last-minute victory in the DFB Pokal at SC Paderborn 07, the Swabians can now take to the pitch at the BayArena with greater confidence on Saturday, 31 October (kick-off: 15:30 CET). The lowdown on our next opponents.
Show more
