The announced upheaval with runner -up Bayer Leverkusen is surprisingly violent. This poses both risk and opportunities.
The squad of Bayer Leverkusen similar to a shift station these days. There is lively coming and going. Players and coaches go, new players and coaches come. Back numbers and captain tapes are changed and passed on. Even the home team’s replacement bench is on the other side of the player tunnel in the new season to be closer to the home curve in the Bayarena.
“There will be a breath of fresh air in the squad, we want to create a new dynamic,” announced sports director Simon Rolfes in May when the double winner had to end the most successful season in the club’s history with a game time without title and had success coach Xabi Alonso. Rolfes said: “Many players, many important players will stay. And we will also get good players.”
Leader and Service provider gone
At least the first part of the statement does not seem to be able to meet a good three months later. A flood of further exits followed on Xabi Alonso’s farewell. Both absolute top performers and important supplementary players have left the association. With Captain Lukas Hradecky (As Monaco), Jonathan Tah (Bayern Munich) and Granit Xhaka (AFC Sunderland), three leaders went.
In addition, there are the financially particularly lucrative, but sporty sales of Florian Wirtz and Jeremie Frimpong (both Liverpool FC), as well as Amine Adli (AFC Bournemouth) since this week. The loan players Nordi Mukiele (Paris SG), Emiliano Buendia (Aston Villa) and Mario Hermoso (as Rome) are also no longer there. The second goalkeeper, Matej Kovar, also left the club towards PSV Eindhoven, initially on a loan.
Experienced goalkeepers and many new talents
But the new coach, Erik Ten HAG, does not go into his first season in Leverkusen with a decimated squad. Because there were already numerous new additions to the many departures and more could follow. With Mark Flekken (FC Brentford) a new number one and Janis Blaswich (RB Leipzig) also committed his substitute. For the defense center, Jarell Quansah (22/FC Liverpool) and Loïc Badé (25/FC Sevilla) have been brought in two well -known and costly new ones, plus a great talent with Axel Tape (17/Paris St. Germain), which was already convincing in preparation.
The gap that Wirtz tears in the creative center should fill Ibrahim Maza (19/Hertha BSC) and Malik Tillmann (23/PSV Eindhoven) if possible. Ernest Poku (21/AZ Alkmaar) and the newly obliged loan Claudio Echeverri (19/Manchester City) can also enrich the new offensive. With striker Christian Kofane (18/Albacete) there is also a new one at the forefront, which was able to mark his first competitive goal for Bayer in the DFB Cup. Should Victor Boniface also leave the club, Kofane could go to the first substitute for Patrik Schick in the storm center.
New Leader wanted
The “fresh wind” announced by Rolfes does not affect the individual parts of the team, but also the age and leadership structure of the squad. The new summer access is an average of three years younger than the departures, with the new captain Robert Andrich and Jonas Hofmann are only two field players 30 years or older. Only the two goalkeepers and ex-Bavarian Tillmann Bundesliga experience have of the new ones. In addition to Andrich and Hofmann, experienced Bayer players such as Edmond Tapsoba or Exequiel Palacios will also have to take on leadership roles in the future.
For the fans, the new season will also get used to the many new ones. This was already evident at the opening of the season when stadium spokesman Tobias Ufer presented the players before the test game against FC Pisa and called the first name, but the respective last name could only be returned by the audience loudly.
Transitional year or attack on Europe?
The most difficult task has coach ten HAG. The Dutchman had to see after his head -on how his squad changed week after week and will probably say goodbye and welcome and welcome more players until the end of the transfer period after the start of the season on Saturday around 1899 (3:30 p.m.). Ten HAG now has to form this new factory, consisting of a few leaders and a large number of highly talented footballers, into a team that can implement its game philosophy.
A season forecast is therefore difficult. For Bayer, the upheaval with many new and young players and a new team of coaches harbors great risks, but also opportunities. The home game against Hoffenheim on Saturday will be a first yardstick as to whether the new season will only be a transitional season or Bayer can attack the front places again directly thanks to the fresh cell cure with the “young wild ones”.
