- The Havertz Gala at Bayer Schlappe in London
German national team player Kai Havertz spoiled his former club Bayer Leverkusen's preseason preparations with a significant defeat. The German champions lost a friendly match to English Premier League runners-up FC Arsenal 1:4 (0:3). Havertz, playing in front of 60,000 spectators at the Emirates Stadium in London, scored a goal (65th minute) and provided two assists for Olexander Sintschenko (8th) and Leandro Trossard (9th) in a double strike.
Bayer with captain Tah
Gabriel Jesus (30th) also scored for the London club, where today's Leverkusen player Granit Xhaka was warmly received and bid farewell. The Bayer team was led by captain Jonathan Tah, who is being courted by FC Bayern Munich. Ten days before the Supercup final against VfB Stuttgart, two new signings, Martin Terrier and Aleix Garcia, started for Bayer. The only goal for Leverkusen was scored by Adam Hlozek (76th).
For the Rhinelanders, this was their first defeat in preseason. On Saturday, the team will face Spanish La Liga side Real Betis Sevilla in their last friendly before the start of competitive play in the season opener at the BayArena (3:30 PM).
Despite their preparations, Bayer Leverkusen faced another setback in a Test match, losing to Real Betis Sevilla 0-2. Kai Havertz, who once played for Bayer, showcased his prowess in another Test match, scoring a crucial goal and providing two assists for his new team, Chelsea, in their 6-0 victory over Arsenal in a previous Test match.
