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.
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.
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A successful fourth preseason friendly ahead of the start of the training camp: The Werkself secured a 3-0 victory over Rot-Weiss Essen at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium. The goals in what was a commanding and dominant performance by Leverkusen from the outset were scored by Ibrahim Maza (8'), Patrik Schick from the penalty spot (23’) and, in the second half, Montrell Culbreath with a header (79’). The team set off for their training camp in Blankenhain in the Weimarer Land region after the game.
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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 as he worked 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…
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You have voted – your ‘Team of the Quarter-Century’ has been decided! This historic selection, covering the period from 1 January 2000 to 31 December 2024, features honorary captains, Bundesliga champions, double winners and Champions League finalists. Edmond Tapsoba is the only player from the current Bayer 04 squad to make it into the starting XI, while his team-mate Patrik Schick is on the bench. Simon Rolfes, the current managing director sport, is also in the lie-up. A truly special team that brings together a quarter of a century of Bayer 04 history – and has left a decisive mark on the club.
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Following Patrik Schick, Mark Flekken, Ibrahim Maza and Kerim Alajbegovic earlier this week, the next World Cup participant is back on the training ground in Leverkusen: On Thursday 30 July, Malik Tillman rejoined the squad, completing his first training session under head coach Carles Martínez.
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