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“Every game is hard. We’ve learned that. I’m expecting my team to play with intelligence and maturity. We’re preparing with full respect, just as well as we did against Bayern or Milan,” Alonso stressed on Friday afternoon.
Kiel are playing in the Bundesliga for the first time in their history this season but sit bottom of the table after five games. Their only point so far has come from a 2-2 draw away at Bochum. Asked about the promoted side, Alonso said: “They may have only one point, but normally they’d earn more. They’re a good team who play well. They have a young and aspiring coach in Marcel Rapp. I’ve analysed Holstein Kiel well. They’ve done some fantastic things in the past. We need to be ready for them.”
Alonso was also asked about potential rotation given the intensity of the past week with two big games. “It could be that other players play, but we’ll see what happens. We have a good squad and all the players are ready to play. They show a top attitude in every training session. The important thing is that we build on our good defensive work. It’s worked better the last few times. We kept a clean sheet against Milan. That was important, and now we want that as well in the Bundesliga.”
Saturday’s game is Alonso’s 100th in charge of the Werkself in all competitions. It will also be exactly two years since he took over on 5 October 2022. Asked about his spell at the helm so far, he said: “A lot has happened, and we’ve all been through a lot together. The development of the entire club and the team is great, and I’m proud to be a part of this process. I’ve learned a lot, and at times it was very hard. I won’t forget the first few months in particular. I hope we can celebrate together with a win tomorrow.”
The Spaniard was also asked to give a summary of the season so far after eight games, saying: “It’s still very early. We’re making good progress and still in all competitions. But we’re still only thinking one game at a time, one block at a time. We want to end this block before the international break with a win against Kiel.”
The BayArena is already sold out for this final game before the international break, including around 2,800 travelling Kiel supporters.

Bayer 04 Leverkusen have loaned U19 midfielder Jeremiah Mensah to Dutch second-tier side Roda JC Kerkrade for one year. The 18-year-old Germany youth international has a long-term contract at the club to 2031.
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Bayer 04 kick off the final phase of their 2026/27 pre-season preparations with a friendly against Premier League club Nottingham Forest. Head coach Carles Martínez’s team will take to the pitch at the City Ground today, Wednesday 12 August (kick-off: 8.45 pm/7.45 pm local time). Werkself-TV will broadcast the match live and in full exclusively for Bayer 04 members via livestream from 8.35 pm...

Villa Fiorito, River Plate, Ligue 1, the World Cup final and now Bayer 04: Facundo Medina’s life story so far has been shaped by special places, clubs, matches and names. One of them is Diego Maradona, who, like Medina, hailed from the south of Buenos Aires. Another is Exequiel Palacios, his former team-mate at River Plate, who was raving about Bayer 04 to him as recently as the World Cup in North America. Medina has now taken the plunge into the Bundesliga and, as an Argentine World Cup runner-up, has joined Bayer 04 from Olympique de Marseille this week. It is set to be the next successful chapter in his career. Leverkusen’s new number 2 brings with him a South American mentality and passion, a wealth of experience from many years in Ligue 1, and a fascinating story to the Rhineland – and to a club where the 1.84-metre-tall left-footed player will be reunited with Palacios and several other familiar faces.
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Shortly after signing his contract with Bayer 04, new signing Facundo Medina spoke to Werkself.tv about his first impressions of the club, his expectations and his conversations with his Argentine compatriot Exequiel Palacios. The defender also reveals what the fans can look forward to. Welcome to Leverkusen, Facu!
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Welcome back! On Tuesday morning, 11 August, Jarell Quansah and Exequiel Palacios – the last of the Werkself’s World Cup participants – returned to training. The two medallists and their team-mates are set to play their final two pre-season friendlies in England this week before the start of competitive fixtures.
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