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“The winter break was good for us, enjoying a breather with our families. But now we’re glad to get going again,” Alonso stated at his press conference on Friday. “The players have come back with very good energy and in a good condition. We had a high tempo in training from the start. I also liked the friendly match [against Venezia]. We’re absolutely ready, although it’s always tough in Augsburg.” The Werkself in fact lost both meetings with the Bavarians last season.
Augsburg have been much better under Jess Thorup, earning 13 of their 18 points this season since the Dane took over in mid-October. “They’ve very much improved since then, also playing well in their friendly against Hoffenheim [1-0 win],” added Alonso. Augsburg rank bottom of the Bundesliga this season for possession (41.2%), while the Werkself are second with (60.7%), just behind Bayern Munich (61%).
Bayer 04 go to Augsburg without the injured Arthur and Victor Boniface, while Odilon Kossounou, Edmond Tapsoba and Amine Adli are competing at the Africa Cup of Nations. “We were prepared for the situation with the Cup of Nations,” Alonso explained. “We have a good squad and everyone is looking good.”
One of those is Patrik Schick, who bagged a hat-trick in the final game of last year against Bochum. “Patrik is very dangerous in the box and has excellent positional play. He’s also ready for 90 minutes,” the Spaniard stated before also mentioning: “Adam [Hlozek] can play there as well and is in good form. Same with Amine. We’ve got great confidence in every player in general.” It means the club is not under any pressure to sign any additional players. When asked, however, Alonso added: “But if a good option comes up, we’re ready.”
The Werkself will enjoy great support in Augsburg with 2,300 away fans accompanying the team, which is three times more than have ever watched Leverkusen at the WWK Arena.
The club can also announce at the start of this year that the number of away season tickets sold over the winter break has risen by over 200%.
The Sports Tribunal of the German Football Association (DFB) has fined Bayer 04 Leverkusen €185,000 for spectators setting off pyrotechnic devices during a total of five competitive matches. This relates to four Bundesliga matches and the DFB Pokal semi-final against Bayern Munich. The highest individual fine relates to the away match at FC Köln at the end of April.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen have extended the contract with U19 goalkeeper Simeon Rapsch. The Germany youth international goalkeeper has signed a long-term contract with the Werkself running to 30 June 2029. The 18-year-old joined Leverkusen from FC Viktoria Köln in the summer of 2024.
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Ken Izekor is leaving Bayer 04 Leverkusen to join third-tier side Alemannia Aachen with immediate effect. The 19-year-old centre-forward joined the club from Alemannia in 2018, and Izekor is now returning to his hometown.
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The Golden Boy Top 100 traditionally lists Europe’s most promising young players. In the latest update, published to mark the start of the new season, four current Werkself players – alongside loanee Francis Onyeka – feature on the list. This means Bayer 04 have the most players in contention of any Bundesliga club.
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