
Some 60 children attending the Bayer 04 Soccer School were in the press conference room at the BayArena on Thursday afternoon eagerly expecting the arrival of Noah Mbamba and Madi Monamay. After a vocal reception, the 6- to 14-year-olds fired off questions to the Belgian duo about how they started football and their motives for moving under the Bayer Cross. "Leverkusen are a good team. We want to achieve a lot here," Monamay told the children.
Mbamba revealed to the children that he met Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé and Co. in the group match against Paris Saint-Germain in the 2021/22 Champions League campaign and that it was one of the absolute highlights of his career to date. Monamay answered the question of how he wanted to achieve his dream of being a professional footballer: "Through discipline, hard work in training and belief in myself.".

Mbamba and Monamay also answered in response to the classic questions of "Messi or Ronaldo?" and "Who is your favourite player?" Defender Monamay named World Cup and European Championship winner Sergio Ramos with the explanation: "He's a good player of outstanding merit and one of my idols in football."
All the questions were answered by the end of the 30-minute children's press conference. The Leverkusen players finished off by happily fulfilling all autograph and photo requests – and after a good hour they left happy and clearly satisfied children at the Bayer 04 Soccer School.

The thrilling 3-1 win for Bayer 04 against Eintracht Frankfurt in the Hinrunde is a fond memory for Alejandro Grimaldo, with his brace from free kicks, and coach Kasper Hjulmand, who was in the dugout under the Cross for the first time. Now comes the return fixture in the metropolis on the River Main and after going out of the DFB Pokal and the Champions League, the full focus at Eintracht, currently managed by two interim coaches, is now on the Bundesliga. For their part, the Werkself will do everything in their power to continue the longest winning run against a Bundesliga club. The matchday news.
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Bayer 04 have ended Artem Stepanov’s loan deal at Nürnberg and agreed a new loan to Utrecht in the Netherlands. The Ukrainian striker did not play as much as hoped for at the Bundesliga 2 club and will now continue his development in the Eredivisie for the rest of 2025/26.
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After back-to-back wins at home, Bayer 04 are now out for their first away win of 2026 as they visit Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday (15:30 CET). Ahead of the Matchday 20 fixture in the Bundesliga, Kasper Hjulmand spoke about renewed confidence, Frankfurt’s recent issues and Patrik Schick’s form so far this year.
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Eintracht Frankfurt are yet to win a game in 2026 and have managed only one victory in their last 12 competitive fixtures. Having already been eliminated from the DFB Pokal and the UEFA Champions League, the Eagles are now focusing solely on the Bundesliga as they seek to get their season back on track with the visit of the Werkself on Saturday afternoon. Here’s the lowdown on our next opponents…
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