How will Leverkusen Fare This Season

Neverkusen

Leverkusen must win their next two games (Wolfsburg & Augsburg) if they hope to qualify for CL next season.

Those who follow German League and/or Leverkusen, would you please give a review of how they are shaping-up for the season:

1. Major purchases
2. Major departures
3. Major injuries
4. Performance (fitness, tactics and team-chemistry) in pre-seasons

Most of the news about them are in German so not at all helpful for me.

The transfer data is from transfermarkt.de

Incoming:
- Admir Mehmedi (24) (SS), 8 Mio Euros from SC Freiburg
- Jonathan Tah (19) (CB), 7.5 Mio Euros from HSV
- Kyriakos Papadopoulos (23) (CB), 6.5 Mio Euros from Schalke 04
- Christoph Kramer (24) (DM), back from loan at Borussia M'gladbach

Outgoing:
- Gonzalo Castro (28) (CM), 11 mio Euros to Borussia Dortmund
- Josip Drmić (22) (CF), 10 mio Euros to Borussia M'gladbach
- Simon Rolfes (33) (DM), retired

Full info: http://www.transfermarkt.de/bayer-04-leverkusen/transfers/verein/15/saison_id/2015

Major injuries:
- Ömer Toprak (CB), recovering from ruptured sinew, return End of 2015
- Tin Jedvaj (CB), thigh problems, return unknown

Pre-Season test matches:
6.July: Carl Zeiss Jena - Bayer Leverkusen 1:5 (1:3)
12 July: Bayer Leverkusen - Lierse SK 6:0 (3:0)
19 July: Bayer Leverkusen - Olympique Marseille 1:4 (0:1)
22 July: Bayer Leverkusen - Lokomotive Moskau 3:1 (2:0)
27 July: Alemannia Aachen - Bayer Leverkusen 1:1 (1:0)
30 July: FC Seoul - Bayer Leverkusen 0:2 (0:1)
5 August: Wuppertaler SV - Bayer Leverkusen 1:3 (1:1)
9 August: FC Southampton - Bayer Leverkusen 0:1 (0:0)

rwo power wrote:The transfer data is from transfermarkt.de

Incoming:
- Admir Mehmedi (24) (SS), 8 Mio Euros from SC Freiburg
- Jonathan Tah (19) (CB), 7.5 Mio Euros from HSV
- Kyriakos Papadopoulos (23) (CB) He was highly rated and was linked with Liverpool few seasons ago. Injury-prone, I heard.
- Christoph Kramer (24) (DM) Seems to be very highly rated.

Outgoing:
- Gonzalo Castro (28) (CM) First-team regular, should be a loss.
- Josip Drmić (22) (CF) Highly rated but very young.
- Simon Rolfes (33) (DM), retired

Full info: http://www.transfermarkt.de/bayer-04-leverkusen/transfers/verein/15/saison_id/2015

Major injuries:
- Ömer Toprak (CB), recovering from ruptured sinew, return End of 2015
- Tin Jedvaj (CB), thigh problems, return unknown

Pre-Season test matches:
6.July: Carl Zeiss Jena - Bayer Leverkusen 1:5 (1:3)
12 July: Bayer Leverkusen - Lierse SK 6:0 (3:0)
19 July: Bayer Leverkusen - Olympique Marseille 1:4 (0:1)
22 July: Bayer Leverkusen - Lokomotive Moskau 3:1 (2:0)
27 July: Alemannia Aachen - Bayer Leverkusen 1:1 (1:0)
30 July: FC Seoul - Bayer Leverkusen 0:2 (0:1)
5 August: Wuppertaler SV - Bayer Leverkusen 1:3 (1:1)
9 August: FC Southampton - Bayer Leverkusen 0:1 (0:0)

Thanks rwo. I have gathered as much. But the thing is most of the names don't mean much to me and so I really don't know the true situation.

Alemannia Aachen up there with Marseille, not losing to Leverkusen

@iftikhar

Well, Papa is a really great defender when healthy. But unfortunately he has knee problems that hampered him quite a bit so far.

Chris Kramer is really good. He was one of the top players at Gladbach last season - he's a virtuall Duracell bunny - he runs and runs and runs....

Josip Drmić had the problem that he was in the shadow of Stefan Kießling all the last season and didn't really get a chance to play. He should have more fun at Gladbach, as Gladbach lost Max Kruse who was their most prolific attacker.

As for Gonzalo Castro - he will indeed be quite a loss, yeah.

@Helmer

The 2nd Bundesliga already started last week, so Alemannia Aachen were practically through with their pre-season.

Kramer is excellent, Papadopolous is excellent, but injury-prone and already played at Leverkusen on a loan. Jonathan Tah is one of the most exciting young CBs in Germany, but all young CBs are hit-and-miss, so this remains to be seen. Mehmedi is a nice depth signing.

Losing Castro is a big hit, I don't get why anyone would sell him and prefer to assume he wanted to leave. Drmic mostly left because he was promised more minutes AFAIK, not a huge loss since their "talented, young striker"-Posterboy is Julian Brandt anyway, who I think is better.
Rolfes retiring is sad because he was awesome, but not a huge loss because he was mostly injured for the past two seasons.

I thought Brandt was a winger? Who do Leverkusen have as a back-up to Kiessling this season? I guess Son can play striker too, right?

Well, Brandt is one of those wingers who are basically a striker coming in from the wings. He doesn't track that far back (well, he does, but he's more a Reus or Müller than a DiMaria) - he's looking to score most of the time and has been mostly cutting inside and trying to shoot, or tier up passes in the final third, instead of trying to cross. So he's more of a SS kind of type, maybe he'll even be a proper CF when he's all grown up.

So basically they at the same level as last season ? Some positions have been improved (Kramer, Papadopolous) while some positions have taken a hit.

How do you fancy their prospect of qualifying for Champions League (they might face Lazio or Monaco in the play-off). Are they a genuine contender for Champions League places?

I think they might be better than last season because a lot of their main assets are very young and will probably improve with each season, and it's the second season under a coach that seems to know what he's doing.

I think they'll qualify, and will probably make 3rd or 4th in the Bundesliga again.

Normally they should be able to proceed if they manage to convert their chances. Las year's defeats to Monaco were less because Monaco were much better, but more because Leverkusen tripped over their own feet.

As for the CL spots - this season's fight for the top4 places will be harder than ever before. Wolfsburg will definitely go to chase Bayern, if they manage to keep KDB, while Gladbach, Dortmund, Schalke and Leverkusen will definitely go for the CL spots, too. Add to that the usual surprise team (maybe Werder this time?), and the fight will be on.

Leverkusen

Wow, that was mighty impressive.

Currently the Leverkusen bosses are not amused by Son Heung-Min who sort of stole away to force a transfer to Tottenham Hotspur...

rwo power wrote:Currently the Leverkusen bosses are not amused by Son Heung-Min who sort of stole away to force a transfer to Tottenham Hotspur...

Yeah, I don't think they can properly replace him with the time remaining. They didn't had that good a squad to begin with.

I suspect Pep

They should grab Ziyech from Twente. They can thank me later.

Rumours (SSNHD) have it that Kevin Kampl will leave Borussia Dortmund for Bayer Leverkusen. Plus it seems that Bayern's Pierre-Emile Höjbjerg will join Bayer on loan.

rwo power wrote:Rumours (SSNHD) have it that Kevin Kampl will leave Borussia Dortmund for Bayer Leverkusen. Plus it seems that Bayern's Pierre-Emile Höjbjerg will join Bayer on loan.

How good are they? That Höjbjerg kid is highly rated/hyped, if I'm not mistaken.

I originally noticed Kevin Kampl when he still played at RB Salzburg against Basel, and there he was the outstanding player of his team. For Dortmund he didn't show too much yet, though. But I think he should be able to stand in for Son Heung-Min.

Pierre-Emile Höjbjerg is quite okay. Dunno how much he can strengthen Leverkusen, though, as he is still a work in progress.

Schmid got Kampl to RB Salzburg and he blossomed under him, so that makes sense.

I wouldn't mind Höjbjerg being loaned out again, as long as it's clear it's JUST a loan and no funny business.
Don't know if he'll get just enough minutes for us already.

Son was great, but imho they already have able replacements in the form of Mehmedi and Brandt, one of Kampl or Hjöjbjerg for depth and they'll be fine.

Also, yesterday, in the post-match interview Tante Käthe didn't seem like he was surprised by, or angry with, Son.

A Bayer Leverkusen thread that just keeps on going, Ifty's greatest achievement on GL, imo.

If there's god, I urge him to lash these insipid imbeciles with a fiery whip or something. 4-4 with Roma and now 3-3 with Stuttgart .

iftikhar wrote:If there's god, I urge him to lash these insipid imbeciles with a fiery whip or something. 4-4 with Roma and now 3-3 with Stuttgart   .

4:3, you mean. You should never leave a Bundesliga match early