Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 29 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 12 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Bayer Leverkusen they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 9.51 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 8 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Marked 9.07 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Marked 8.79 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
“I did not go to Middlesbrough to sit and watch. I want to come back to Bayer Leverkusen and fight for my place.” 5 appearances in 17 matches say the rest.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Exequiel Palacios trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 8.45 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 10 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
A 3‑2 win over VfL Wolfsburg, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Marked 8.15 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
There was no pressure on him and nowhere he had to be. Bayer Leverkusen lost a goal to a decision that took half a second and will be discussed all week.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 9 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Bayer Leverkusen is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 8.71 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
“I did not go to Bayern Munich to sit and watch. I want to come back to Bayer Leverkusen and fight for my place.” 4 appearances in 14 matches say the rest.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
An error at the back is a moment; an error in goal is a goal. Mark Flekken knows it, the crowd knew it instantly, and there was nobody behind him to make it anything else.
“I did not go to Middlesbrough to sit and watch. I want to come back to Bayer Leverkusen and fight for my place.” 3 appearances in 13 matches say the rest.
Everything was agreed until it was not, and Equi Fernández reports back to Bayer Leverkusen with a summer to forget. Neither club is saying who walked away from the table.
“I want to win things, and I would like to do it here.” Nothing has been demanded and nothing has been threatened — but a boardroom at Bayer Leverkusen hears a sentence like that exactly as it was built.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Bayer Leverkusen know it.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Malik Tillman. 3‑2 against TSG Hoffenheim, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Marked 9.47 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Marked 9.15 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 8 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Werder Bremen pay $17.0M, and the deal is done. The number reads well on a balance sheet; whether it reads well on the pitch is next season's question.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Bayer Leverkusen, and it is not being withdrawn.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Bayer Leverkusen they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The shirt still fits. Daniel Arnold is back at Bayer Leverkusen, and half the ground remembers him in these colours already. Some signings need selling to the town; this one sold itself.
Marked 8.27 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
“I have supported clubs like this one. I know what a bad Saturday feels like here.” The new man starts with nothing behind him and everything in front of him.
The offer from Köln for Equi Fernández was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“I am grateful for the games, but I did not become a footballer to be somebody else's spare part.” He wants to be at Bayer Leverkusen, and 2 appearances in 9 say he has earned the hearing.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Bayer Leverkusen can pretend not to have heard.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The phone has started ringing about Equi Fernández again, and this time the name on the line is Köln. Bayer Leverkusen are listening politely and promising nothing.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Bayer Leverkusen know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Bayer Leverkusen, and both men came out saying it was fine.
273 appearances across 9 seasons in one shirt. Nobody builds a career like that on purpose any more; it happens to a certain kind of footballer at a certain kind of club.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
36 days with the chair empty, a list of names that grows and shrinks by the day, and not one signature on anything. Every week that passes takes the best candidates off it.
“I want to be playing for trophies while my legs still let me.” Nothing in that sentence is a transfer request, and nobody at Bayer Leverkusen heard it as anything else.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Bayer Leverkusen can pretend not to have heard.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Bayer Leverkusen is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Loïc Badé was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The offer from VfB Stuttgart for Abdoulaye Faye was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Christian Kofane and Bayer Leverkusen agree another 5 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“I am grateful for the games, but I did not become a footballer to be somebody else's spare part.” He wants to be at Bayer Leverkusen, and 0 appearances in 5 say he has earned the hearing.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Bayer Leverkusen, and it is not being withdrawn.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Bayer Leverkusen know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Henry Mosquera has done the arithmetic and does not like the answer. Nothing corrodes a squad faster, and no club has ever solved it by explaining the wage structure to a footballer.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Bayer Leverkusen can pretend not to have heard.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Jonas Hofmann and Bayer Leverkusen agree another 2 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Bayer Leverkusen are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
Day 8 of the vacancy. Candidates have been priced, sounded out and quietly ruled out — and the caretaker’s win ratio is becoming an argument all by itself.
Four paragraphs on the club website, none of them about football. The board thanked him, wished him well, and had the search under way before the page went up.
“I am not thinking past Saturday, and I would advise nobody else to.” The caretaker’s first rule is to pretend the job is small; Interim Coach recited it perfectly.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Bayer Leverkusen they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Jonas Hofmann and Bayer Leverkusen agree another 2 years.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Malik Tillman signs something — a contract at Bayer Leverkusen or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Bayer Leverkusen can pretend not to have heard.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Bayer Leverkusen is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Mauro Valiente and Bayer Leverkusen agree another 4 years.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Bayer Leverkusen can pretend not to have heard.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Everyone has stopped pretending: Köln will make the call about Bakery Jatta this week. Bayer Leverkusen have a number in mind, and the number is not shy.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Bayer Leverkusen know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
A season average of 7.40 at an age when most of his year group are still in the youth team. Bayer Leverkusen know what they have, and so, by now, does everybody else.
The offer from Eintracht Frankfurt for Alejo Sarco was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
“I want to be playing for trophies while my legs still let me.” Nothing in that sentence is a transfer request, and nobody at Bayer Leverkusen heard it as anything else.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The board have said in public what they had been saying in private. Results between now and the next meeting decide it, and everybody in the building knows the arithmetic.
“I want to be playing for trophies while my legs still let me.” Nothing in that sentence is a transfer request, and nobody at Bayer Leverkusen heard it as anything else.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Mark Flekken and Bayer Leverkusen agree another 2 years.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Bayer Leverkusen has been clear about where Alejo Sarco stands, which is more than many ever get.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Bayer Leverkusen can pretend not to have heard.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Bayer Leverkusen they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Nathan Tella trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Bayer Leverkusen have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Christian Kofane and Bayer Leverkusen agree another 5 years.
A season average of 7.40 at an age when most of his year group are still in the youth team. Bayer Leverkusen know what they have, and so, by now, does everybody else.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Bayer Leverkusen have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Leon Goretzka and Bayer Leverkusen agree another 2 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Bayer Leverkusen are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Bayer Leverkusen is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Bayer Leverkusen have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Bayer Leverkusen, and it is not being withdrawn.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Loïc Badé was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Every touch is being weighed now, in print and everywhere else. Some players grow into that and some are quietly ruined by it, and nobody knows which in advance.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Day 39 of the vacancy. Candidates have been priced, sounded out and quietly ruled out — and the caretaker’s win ratio is becoming an argument all by itself.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Equi Fernández will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Bayer Leverkusen the goodbyes have quietly begun.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
There was no pressure on him and nowhere he had to be. Bayer Leverkusen lost a goal to a decision that took half a second and will be discussed all week.
He is the name in every column and on every phone-in, which is a heavy thing to carry at any age. Some footballers thrive on it; others are quietly finished by it.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Elye Wahi. 3‑1 against Bayern Munich, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Marked 8.89 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Marked 8.57 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Marked 8.45 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
A season average of 7.36 at an age when most of his year group are still in the youth team. Bayer Leverkusen know what they have, and so, by now, does everybody else.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Bayer Leverkusen are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
Marked 8.02 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Mainz 05 will want this one forgotten quickly: 4‑1, every duel lost, and a long ride home. Bayer Leverkusen were ruthless in the way good sides are ruthless.
“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
3 wins in a row changes how opponents warm up: quieter, more glances across. Runs end, everybody knows that — but nobody in this dressing room is planning for it.
11 days since the seat came open, a list of names doing the rounds, and nobody has signed anything. Every week this drags on the shortlist gets shorter.
The end came on a Tuesday, as these things usually do: a short meeting, a shorter statement, and Nicholas Wood clearing his office by noon. Football’s cruellest ritual, performed to schedule.
“Somebody has to pick the team on Saturday, and this week that is me.” An interim appointment with no promises attached, which is how most of them start.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Bayer Leverkusen is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Nathan Tella and Bayer Leverkusen agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Marked 9.31 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 16 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
He is 21, he is averaging 7.34, and older professionals have started passing to him in the difficult minutes. That last part is the real scouting report.
Patrik Schick was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Malik Tillman signs something — a contract at Bayer Leverkusen or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
He is the name in every column and on every phone-in, which is a heavy thing to carry at any age. Some footballers thrive on it; others are quietly finished by it.
In brief
Loan watchThe goals keep arriving from Alejo Sarco’s exile
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Shots: 15. Goals: none. The chances were there and they were good ones, and they went into the stand, the goalkeeper's arms and the side netting in roughly that order.
1‑4 against VfB Stuttgart, and no complaints that would survive the replay. The manager spoke about character afterwards; the terraces used shorter words.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 9 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
What was said behind closed doors has now been said in front of a microphone. Everybody at Bayer Leverkusen can do the arithmetic, including the man it is aimed at.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Bayer Leverkusen is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Patrik Schick was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 40 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 36 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 8.85 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
The fee is $7.7M, the contract is signed, and the argument about whether he is worth it can begin. VfB Stuttgart drove a hard bargain; time will say who won it.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 7 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 27 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
Patrik Schick was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 11 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
The fee is $10.5M, the contract is signed, and the argument about whether he is worth it can begin. Eintracht Frankfurt drove a hard bargain; time will say who won it.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 9.10 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Bayer Leverkusen is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Bayer Leverkusen, and it is not being withdrawn.
Patrik Schick was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Bayer Leverkusen can pretend not to have heard.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“I want to be playing for trophies while my legs still let me.” Nothing in that sentence is a transfer request, and nobody at Bayer Leverkusen heard it as anything else.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Nathan Tella. 4‑3 against Heidenheim, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 7 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
5 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
He is 21, he is averaging 7.08, and older professionals have started passing to him in the difficult minutes. That last part is the real scouting report.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Loïc Badé signs something — a contract at Bayer Leverkusen or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Ibrahim Maza and Bayer Leverkusen agree another 5 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Bayer Leverkusen has to find a result from somewhere.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 8 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Bayer Leverkusen they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 8.83 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Shots: 13. Goals: none. The chances were there and they were good ones, and they went into the stand, the goalkeeper's arms and the side netting in roughly that order.
“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Jonas Hofmann and Bayer Leverkusen agree another 2 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Marked 9.25 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
It needed Loïc Badé to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Eintracht Frankfurt, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.
In brief
The terracesThe spotlight tightens on Mark Flekken
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 8 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 31 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Bayer Leverkusen have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
A season average of 7.03 at an age when most of his year group are still in the youth team. Bayer Leverkusen know what they have, and so, by now, does everybody else.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Shots: 10. Goals: none. The chances were there and they were good ones, and they went into the stand, the goalkeeper's arms and the side netting in roughly that order.
In brief
Player ratingsThe one thing Malik Tillman could not do
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Bayer Leverkusen they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Bayer Leverkusen have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 11 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Bayer Leverkusen know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Bayer Leverkusen have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Patrik Schick was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 10 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 9.98 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 13 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Bayer Leverkusen they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Patrik Schick was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Marked 8.74 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Marked 8.88 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
A defender's mistake gets tidied up by somebody else; a goalkeeper's ends up in the net. He knew before the ball crossed the line, and so did everybody in the ground.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Nathan Tella was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Ernest Poku. 2‑1 against FC Augsburg, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Marked 8.77 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Bayer Leverkusen is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 8.82 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Shots: 12. Goals: none. The chances were there and they were good ones, and they went into the stand, the goalkeeper's arms and the side netting in roughly that order.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 8 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
The offer from Hamburger SV for Equi Fernández was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Ernest Poku. 3‑2 against Heidenheim, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Marked 9.49 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
0‑4 against RB Leipzig, and no complaints that would survive the replay. The manager spoke about character afterwards; the terraces used shorter words.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
He left as a boy and has come back still knowing where the away end is. Most signings have to be explained to a town; this one needed a photograph and nothing else.
Some transfers need a press campaign. This one needed a shirt with the old number on it. Hans Meier is a Bayer Leverkusen player again, and the town has its story of the summer.
He left as a boy and has come back still knowing where the away end is. Most signings have to be explained to a town; this one needed a photograph and nothing else.
The shirt still fits. Marc Günther is back at Bayer Leverkusen, and half the ground remembers him in these colours already. Some signings need selling to the town; this one sold itself.
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Ibrahim Maza, and the manager let it.
Boardroom28 Aug 2028
The ground is getting bigger
The plans are signed off at a capacity of 47722. Decisions like this are judged twenty years later, by people who were not in the room when they were taken.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Bayer Leverkusen know it.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Jarell Quansah and Bayer Leverkusen agree another 5 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Bayer Leverkusen is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.
“I respect the manager and I am not going to sit here and pretend I am happy.” It is the most common sentence in football and it has never once been the end of a story.
The offer from Union Berlin for Artem Stepanov was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Lucas Vázquez will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Bayer Leverkusen the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Leon Goretzka trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
The phone has started ringing about Artem Stepanov again, and this time the name on the line is Union Berlin. Bayer Leverkusen are listening politely and promising nothing.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Bayer Leverkusen, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Bayer Leverkusen, and both men came out saying it was fine.
The offer from Borussia Dortmund for Artem Stepanov was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Add another name to the list: NEC have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Robert Andrich. The answer from Bayer Leverkusen has not changed — yet.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Jeanuël Belocian and Bayer Leverkusen agree another 4 years.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Lucas Vázquez will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Bayer Leverkusen the goodbyes have quietly begun.
The name of Artem Stepanov has come up in conversations Bayer Leverkusen were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Jarell Quansah trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
The chase for Eric Martel ended with $68.0M changing hands and Mainz 05 out of reasons to say no. The supporters will judge the fee the only way that matters: on Saturdays.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Everyone has stopped pretending: St. Pauli will make the call about Equi Fernández this week. Bayer Leverkusen have a number in mind, and the number is not shy.
“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The offer from SC Freiburg for Artem Stepanov was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
“I want to win things, and I would like to do it here.” Nothing has been demanded and nothing has been threatened — but a boardroom at Bayer Leverkusen hears a sentence like that exactly as it was built.
Loïc Badé was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The loan is done. Appearances: 29. Goals: 13. The number that matters is neither — it is how the manager looks at him on the first morning of training.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Bayer Leverkusen is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Jonas Hofmann and Bayer Leverkusen agree another 2 years.
“I have watched this squad. There is more in it than the table says.” First press conference, first promise — Nicholas Wood made the one every new manager makes, and now comes the part where it gets checked.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The captaincy has been taken off Malik Tillman. Bayer Leverkusen will call it a decision about the team; a dressing room reads it as a verdict on a man.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Malik Tillman and Bayer Leverkusen agree another 5 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Victor Boniface has done the arithmetic and does not like the answer. Nothing corrodes a squad faster, and no club has ever solved it by explaining the wage structure to a footballer.
3 months left, and both sides know what that means: every week without a signature, the fee Bayer Leverkusen could ask drops and the wages Lucas Vázquez can ask rise.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Bayer Leverkusen have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Bayer Leverkusen is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 44 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Bayer Leverkusen have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Loïc Badé was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
40 days since the seat came open, a list of names doing the rounds, and nobody has signed anything. Every week this drags on the shortlist gets shorter.
Marked 8.07 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
An error at the back is a moment; an error in goal is a goal. Mark Flekken knows it, the crowd knew it instantly, and there was nobody behind him to make it anything else.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Nathan Tella trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
In brief
The terracesThe spotlight tightens on Mark Flekken
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 9 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Shots: 13. Goals: none. The chances were there and they were good ones, and they went into the stand, the goalkeeper's arms and the side netting in roughly that order.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Bayer Leverkusen is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“I want to be playing for trophies while my legs still let me.” Nothing in that sentence is a transfer request, and nobody at Bayer Leverkusen heard it as anything else.
12 days since the seat came open, a list of names doing the rounds, and nobody has signed anything. Every week this drags on the shortlist gets shorter.
The end came on a Tuesday, as these things usually do: a short meeting, a shorter statement, and Adam Taylor clearing his office by noon. Football’s cruellest ritual, performed to schedule.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 9 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
“Somebody has to pick the team on Saturday, and this week that is me.” An interim appointment with no promises attached, which is how most of them start.
“I want to be playing for trophies while my legs still let me.” Nothing in that sentence is a transfer request, and nobody at Bayer Leverkusen heard it as anything else.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Nobody upstairs has said anything, which is the loudest thing they could do. Results buy silence in this game; the account at Bayer Leverkusen is running low.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Bayer Leverkusen is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Marked 9.16 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 8.71 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Marked 8.65 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Beaten 5 times, with 5 saves for company. Goalkeepers carry these scorelines on their record whoever actually caused them, which is the quiet injustice of the job.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 9 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
What was said behind closed doors has now been said in front of a microphone. Everybody at Bayer Leverkusen can do the arithmetic, including the man it is aimed at.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Aleix García and Bayer Leverkusen agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 9 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 29 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Bayer Leverkusen, and it is not being withdrawn.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The chase for Henry Mosquera ended with $33.7M changing hands and Bragantino out of reasons to say no. The supporters will judge the fee the only way that matters: on Saturdays.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
The offer from Mainz 05 for Alejo Sarco was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
4 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The name of Alejo Sarco has come up in conversations Bayer Leverkusen were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
Marked 9.03 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Marked 8.56 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
0‑4 to TSG Hoffenheim, and it was every bit as bad as the number suggests. There are defeats you argue about and defeats you apologise for; this was the second kind.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
13 goals in 20 games at Werder Bremen — numbers that travel home faster than he does. Somebody at Bayer Leverkusen updates a spreadsheet every Monday, and it makes better reading each week.
In brief
BoardroomNobody left the Bayer Leverkusen dressing room in a hurry
An individual honour is a strange thing in a team game, and the best of them are never argued with. He has had the sort of year that ends with his name being read out, and Bayer Leverkusen have had the benefit of it.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Bayer Leverkusen have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Marked 8.87 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 9 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Bayer Leverkusen has to find a result from somewhere.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 8.41 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Marked 8.35 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 7 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Bayer Leverkusen, and it is not being withdrawn.
Exequiel Palacios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
It needed Martin Terrier to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Borussia Dortmund, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bayer Leverkusen this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.
Marked 9.34 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Warm-up bib, ninety minutes of watching, and a handshake at the end that fooled nobody. Big matches tell you who a manager trusts; this one told Edmond Tapsoba.