After I finished playing, a lot of people wanted to know which coach impressed me most during my professional career. And even if it doesn’t make much sense comparing different characters, coaches with different ways of working and completely different approaches to the game – Jupp Heynckes was the best.
I believe that and I’m sure no other coach I’ve played for would hold it against me for saying so. As Jupp Heynckes, who will be 75 years old on Saturday, has been above it all for a long time. He’s appreciated like hardly anybody else.
As a former world class striker, he had a goals return that would be unbelievable today. And later as a coach, he followed a path with highs and lows to finally become what he is today: A cornerstone of football! A popular figure far beyond Germany’s borders. A sage of our sport, whose opinions carry special weight.
Particularly in the current social crisis, people like Heynckes are more important than ever for football. In the final years of his career, he still had the ability to learn from mistakes. He didn’t take himself too seriously, always remained keen to learn, was modest and warm-hearted. He was able to ‘guide’ teams like nobody else, fill players with enthusiasm for the common good and create a team spirit that led to lots of wins and titles, to fantastic success.
For me, as I said, he was the best! Happy birthday, Jupp Heynckes!
Bayer 04 midfielder Ibrahim Maza was honoured in Paris in the Best Algerian Young Player category at the Fennec d'Or awards for the Algerian Footballer of the Year, organised for the first time by the football journal La Gazette du Fennec. "It's an honour for me," said the 19-year-old, delighted with the award.
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On the back of two wins within four days, Bayer 04 Women round off an intensive Bundesliga week in the Black Forest. Roberto Pätzold's side have the chance to move back up to third place against SC Freiburg in the final fixture of Matchday 10 on Monday (18:00 CET) and draw level on points with second-placed VfL Wolfsburg.
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The last international break of this calendar year features the final qualifying matches for the 2026 World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico. An overview of who's playing where and when from a Leverkusen point of view.
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Never before have Bayer 04 led 4-0 so early in the Bundesliga, never before have they won a Bundesliga home match by a higher margin. Leverkusen's exhibition display against 1. FC Heidenheim 1846 produced many stories, records and debuts. While Kasper Hjulmand's side celebrated the rousing performance properly with the fans, Jonas Hofmann and Co aren't losing focus: "We have to be careful that we don't just praise ourselves. The games come thick and fast again after the international break." The Werkself Review has all the reaction and analysis of the 6-0 victory at the BayArena.
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