Bayer Leverkusen lost many key players, including Florian Wirtz and Piero Hincapie, and hoped to replace the centre-back with Newcastle defender Sven Botman
German reports say Newcastle blocked Bayer Lebaxen’s bid to sign Sven Bottman on the deadline, as the German side appeared to replace Arsenal-bound Clown Hincapy.
Leverkusen agreed to sell Florian Wiltz and Jeremy Fripon to Liverpool for nearly £150 million, with Captain Granit Zaka also sold Sunderland and Jonathanter on free transfers. Also, after losing key defender Hincapy to Arsenal in the second half of the window, the club chief tried to replace him with Newcastle centre-back botman.
German outlet kickers claim that after Arsenal agreed to an in-season loan with an option to buy for around £45 million, Leberkusen weighed many “good candidates” to replace Hincapie. However, after first putting out their tentacles to sign Botman, they were forced to look elsewhere because they were “not given access.”
read more: Viktor Gyoker may miss an important Arsenal match after being called to court as a witnessread more: Arsenal’s signature acknowledges regret over the summer move – “I would have liked it.”
Newcastle is extremely reluctant to lose any more key personnel after reluctantly agreeing to sell Alexander Isaac to Liverpool and selling British transfer record £125 million. They manage to keep the other top players in place, signing Anthony Elanga, Nick Ultemade, Jacob Ramsey and Joane Wissa.
Ultimately, Leverkusen was unable to find an alternative to Hincapie, increasing the growing issues at the start of the turbulent season.
The Bundesliga side are in crisis after deciding to sack Eric Manager Eric Hug after just two games in the league season.
Sports director Simon Rolfs admitted that hiring Dutch people was a mistake after hinting at behind the scenes tensions and disagreements about the club’s direction.
However, Ten Hag said he was blind to his “unprecedented” looting and insisted that he needed more time to bring success to the club.
“The new coach deserves the space to implement his vision, set standards, shape his team and leave his mark in the style of play,” he said. “I started this job with complete confidence and energy, but unfortunately the managers didn’t try to give me the time and trust I needed.
“The decision of Bayer Lebaxen’s management to take a leave of absence this morning was a complete surprise. Saying goodbye to the coach after just two league matches is unprecedented.”
Join the new WhatsApp community and receive a daily amount of mirror football content. We also treat community members with special offers, promotions and advertising. If you don’t like our community, you can always check out. If you are interested, you can read the privacy notice.
Sky Sports Discount Premier League and EFL Packages
£49
£35
Sky
Get the deal here
Sky has significantly reduced the prices of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundles ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving its members to £336, and offering over 1,400 live matches in the Premier League, EFL and more.
Sky will show at least 215 live Premier League matches next season, showing an even greater increase of up to 100.
