Goalkeeper Mark Flekken made a serious mistake in Bayer 04 Leverkusen’s draw against Newcastle United. Not the Dutchman’s only unfortunate moment this season.
This misfire left its mark. The otherwise energetic and self-confident Mark Flekken looked like a heap of misery late on Wednesday evening (December 10, 2025). Ultimately, his carelessness in building up the game meant that Newcastle United found their way back into the game after falling behind in this important Champions League group game for the Rhinelanders.
Flekken had lost the ball to attacker Nick Woltemade and caused a completely unnecessary penalty. “It’s an old, well-known story. If you make a mistake as a goalkeeper, 19 out of 20 times it turns out very badly,” said the 32-year-old. “Clear penalty, clear mistake on my part. Let’s move on.”
Significant fluctuations
Flekken’s analysis was accurate. And of course he was relieved that his colleagues made it 2-2 almost in the last minute and saved at least one point. All’s well that ends well? Not quite.
Flekken’s season has so far been characterized by significant fluctuations. Coming in as a replacement for long-time Bayer goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky before the current season, Flekken was supposed to further refine Leverkusen’s game.
Flekken should take Bayer 04 to another level
On the one hand, Flekken should be able to act on the goal line at least as well as the Finn, but his footballing skills, which significantly exceed those of Hradecky, should take the Bayer team to a new level in building play. This is the plan of those responsible at Leverkusen, which has not yet worked.
Flekken has often looked unhappy this season. When he conceded a few goals, he looked anything but good, without one being able to accuse him of making such a serious mistake as he did against the English. The Dutchman occasionally lacked the necessary luck to hold a 50:50 ball in his hands instead of having to get it out of his goal net.
Perceptual and statistical problems
There was therefore a latent, perceived dissatisfaction with the Leverkusen goalkeeper among fans and those responsible. However, the statistical values don’t exactly suggest that Flekken is the reinforcement that he should actually be.
The rate of his saves on shots on goal in the Bundesliga is currently 67.8 percent, which means he is only seventh in this ranking after 13 games. He has only kept a clean sheet in three games so far.
For comparison: In the 2023/24 championship season, in which Leverkusen remained undefeated, Hradecky had a save rate of 76.5 percent after his total of 33 games and he played 15 games without conceding a goal.
Strong saves against Manchester
However, Flekken has already shown this season that he can do things differently. In the European premier class, in the surprising 2-0 win at Manchester City, Flekken made Bayer’s away win possible with his many top-class saves. The goalkeeper still lacks consistency.
“That happens. We don’t blame Mark at all. He’s supposed to play along, so it’s not a problem at all,” said Bayer captain Robert Andrich after the Newcastle game.
Our sources
Broadcast: WDR.de | Mark Flekken – Looking for Konstanz | December 11, 2025, 12:05 p.m
