Borussia Mönchengladbach has already cleared the first hurdle in the still young Bundesliga season – and how!
On the first matchday there was a spectacular 4:4 at FC Augsburg. And: Next Saturday (August 26, 2023/6:30 p.m.) things could be just as explosive on the soccer field. Because: In Bayer 04 Leverkusen, not only is a rival from the Rhineland coming to Borussia-Park for the first home game of the season, but there is also a reunion with old friends.
Not only VfL coach Gerardo Seoane (44) has a past with the Werkself. On the Leverkusen side, Jonas Hofmann (31) and Granit Xhaka (31) also have two players with a Borussia past in the current squad.
But the game also promises a lot in terms of sport, as Leverkusen have strengthened themselves considerably in the summer and, after a difficult season, are aiming to attack the top regions of the table again this season.
Can Borussia withstand the pressure from the Werkself and perhaps even cause a surprise at home? Or will Bayer live up to its supposed role as favourite?
All information about the top game of the 2nd Bundesliga matchday is available in the GladbachLIVE ticker!
5:18 p.m.: It is not yet clear what the starting XI of Fohlen and Werkself will look like, but the German Press Agency (dpa) assumes the following formations:
Borussia: Omlin – Scally, Itakura, Wöber – Honorat, Weigl, Neuhaus, Netz – Ngoumou, Plea – Cvancara
Bayer 04 Leverkusen: Hradecky – Kossounou, Tah, Tapsoba – Frimpong, Palacios, Xhaka, Grimaldo – Hofmann, Wirtz – Boniface
5:14 p.m.: And: It could be rich in goals! Because when VfL and Bayer 04 meet in the Bundesliga, an average of 3.38 goals are scored. In total, there were 277 goals in the previous 82 duels – 120 for Borussia and 157 for Leverkusen.
5:02 p.m.: The Werkself have won all of the last four guest appearances at Borussia Park, they had never managed a series like this before.
4:26 p.m.: The Foals won twelve of their home games against Leverkusen. Bayer left the pitch as winners eleven times in Mönchengladbach. There were also 18 draws.
3:19 p.m.: The Foals and the Werkself meet for the 83rd time in the Bundesliga. The record speaks for Leverkusen, who won 33 of the previous 82 duels. Borussia has won 22 times and 27 matches have ended in a draw.
2:03 p.m.: Borussia has summarized information on this again here.
1:58 p.m.: Borussia recommends holders of the digital season ticket to download the tickets to their personal customer account before the match day and store them as a mobile ticket in their smartphone or alternatively print them out as a Print@Home version.
12:43 p.m.: Borussia’s home opener is almost sold out. In the online ticket shop, however, there are still a few tickets available from fans who are unable to attend on the day of the match and have put their tickets up for sale on the local secondary market. So it might be worth taking a look!
11:38 am: Borussia’s “FohlenClub – the member center” opens its doors on Saturday from 3.30 p.m. Various activities will take place there on every home game day, memberships can be taken out and questions about membership can be clarified.
10:22 a.m.: Attention beer drinkers! On the Saturday before the game, Bitburger is giving away a total of 1,650 liters of free beer to Borussia fans in the Bitburger beer garden.
9:13 a.m.: The Bitburger beer garden opens at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, the stadium gates and kiosks at 4:30 p.m. The Fohlen Sportsbar closes at 11 a.m. after breakfast.
Friday 25 August 2023
5:02 p.m.: Leverkusen will have to do without Amine Adli and Piero Hincapié on Saturday, both of whom are still serving a suspension from last season. Sardar Azmoun is also missing due to a muscle tendon injury in his calf, as is striker Patrik Schick, who is still in rehab after adductor surgery.
4:33 p.m.: The sports betting provider “bwin” sees Bayer Leverkusen as the favorite in the top Bundesliga game against Borussia Mönchengladbach on Saturday. For a victory for Leverkusen, who impressed with a 3-2 win against RB Leipzig on the first day of the game, the company pays out EUR 19.50 for a EUR 10 stake.
1:45 p.m.: This ends the PK. There are no more questions.
1:43 p.m.: In Augsburg, the foals showed a lot of commitment and enthusiasm. We can and want to build on these points, says Seoane. Nevertheless, it is also important to improve one or the other so that the emotions are mostly positive.
1:42 p.m.: Seoane says they are happy about the return of Hofmann and Xhaka. Granit has had a great development in London and with the national team. “His hunger, his personality, his will and his professionalism set him apart.” He has done a lot for Swiss football and is a role model.
1.40 p.m.: The possible failure of Luca Netz raises some question marks about his position. Seoane explains that there is no fixed hierarchy. Lukas Ullrich is a good option because he has done a good job of preparing and is also in the game thanks to his appearances in the U23s. Fabio Chiarodia and Max Wöber are also options. Joe Scally could also play on the left, but then Franck Honorat would have to move to the right.
1:39 p.m.: Seoane is asked about the differences between his time at Leverkusen and the current team under Xabi Alsono. Seoane says the team now play with a back three, he used to bet more on a back four. Overall, however, it is difficult to make a comparison.
1:38 p.m.: Seoane emphasizes that Leverkusen have few weaknesses. Nevertheless, the coach also sees certain points here. “The question is whether we can exploit them.” He hopes that his team can put Leverkusen under so much pressure that they make mistakes.
1:37 p.m.: Even if the upcoming game is different than the away game in Augsburg, Seoane and his coaching team draw some conclusions from the game. “You can learn important things from every game,” he says.
1:35 p.m.: Seoane confirms that he still has contacts after Leverkusen – as with all his clubs. In any case, the game will be emotional, but that’s not because of the opponent, but because Borussia is having its first home game and Seoane is playing a competitive game in front of his own fans for the first time. “I’m happy to see my team at home against a strong opponent after a good week of training.”
1:33 p.m.: Bayer Leverkusen is rated highly by many during the season. How does Seoane rate his former club? The manager says the club is of high quality, both individually and as a team. The Werkself are very homogeneous and have a good plan, which you could already see in the second half of the season. However, it is not up to him to define the club’s objectives.
1:31 p.m.: How is the staff? Seoane explains that Kramer, koné and Lainer will be out. Max Wöber twisted his ankle during training today. However, Seoane assumes that he will still be ready for action. But you want to wait for the final tests. Luca Netz has been training individually over the past few days. His mission is still open, an MRI is also due in the afternoon. Ranos and Cvancara are operational.
1.30 p.m.: Let’s go! Seoane has taken a seat and is answering the journalists’ questions!
1:15 p.m.: The seats on the podium in the Borussia-Park press room are still empty, but the press conference before the game against Bayer 04 Leverkusen will start here at 1.30 p.m. In the ticker there are then all the statements to read along.
10:44 am: As usual, the press conference is two days before the game. From 1.30 p.m. coach Gerardo Seoane will answer questions from the media. GladbachLIVE is of course also on site and reports live from the Borussia Park.
Wednesday 23 August
5:18 p.m.: While ex-Borussian Lothar Matthäus (61) will be there as an expert, Wolff Fuss will comment on the match. Sky expert Julia Simic and presenter Sebastian Hellmann are also present in Mönchengladbach.
5:02 p.m.: If, for logistical or other reasons, you don’t want to watch the game live in Borussia Park but on TV at home, you need a subscription or a day ticket for the pay TV channel “Sky”. There, the live broadcast from Borussia Park begins at 5:30 p.m.
4:12 p.m.: Nevertheless, those responsible at Borussia Mönchengladbach are appealing to the spectators not to travel by car if possible. “The more fans come on foot, by bike or with local public transport (free return journey in the VRR and AVV for ticket holders) on Saturday in good weather, the more the traffic situation will relax,” says Nießen. All spectators who have to travel further and are therefore dependent on their car are asked to carpool and arrive early.
3:22 p.m.: But that’s not the only reason there could be traffic problems on Saturday. Because: For operational reasons, Deutsche Bahn will not use any relief trains from Leverkusen. The guest fans can therefore only use the regular train connections or travel with their own car. In order to optimally distribute and direct the various types of traffic, there were several appointments in advance with Borussia’s officials, the police and traffic experts from the city, the German Hockey Association and the parking company PPG. In this way, it was possible to work together to create around 1,600 parking spaces especially for Saturday on the lawn of Reuter Bad and the EWMG near Aachener Straße, on which mainly hockey fans are to park during the day. The parking fee for both groups of spectators on this day is seven euros.
3:01 p.m.: A few hours earlier (2:45 p.m.), the women’s final of the European Hockey Championships will take place in Sparkassen-Park, just 500 meters away. These spectators will take up some parking spaces that are usually reserved for Borussia fans at home games. “We successfully applied to the DFL for the evening game on the second matchday in order to straighten out the whole situation in terms of time. Nevertheless, the traffic situation will be very tense on Saturday evening,” says Bernhard Nießen, director of stadium operations and event manager at Borussia.
2.50 p.m.: According to a report on the Foals’ website, the game against Bayer 04 Leverkusen on Wednesday (23 August) is almost sold out. It is quite possible that the match will be completely full by the time the game kicks off on Saturday (26 August/6:30 p.m.).
2023-08-25 15:18:14
#Gladbach #Leverkusen #information #top #game #ticker
