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| Bayer Leverkusen
is a football club in the German Bundesliga, based in
Leverkusen. It was founded in 1904 on the 1st of July and was part of a sports club established by Friedrich Bayer and Co. Although it was established a long time ago, its successes and fame in the German football scene were not realised until 1988 when they defeated Espanyol of Barcelona 3-2 on penalties after finishing the two-legged UEFA Cup final level 3-3 on aggregate. It was to be, however, their only major tournament victory; their unofficial nickname of 'perennial bridesmaid' was earned in the Bundesliga campaign throughout the late 1990s, which saw them leading the German football league standings only to falter in later matches and ultimately surrender their imminent crown to major rivals Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund. Despite of all these, Bayer Leverkusen was regarded as a major German club as they feature regularly in the top Champions League competition and even advanced to the final of the 2001/2002 edition, only to lose to Real Madrid. Its coach at that time, Klaus Toppmöller, was the inspirational figure in their rise to the pinnacle of European club football. The club went through startling reversals of fortune in the next two seasons. In the 2002 offseason, Bayer lost midfield stars Michael Ballack and Zé Roberto to archrivals Bayern. The club proceeded to flirt with relegation for most of the 2002/03 season, which also saw Klaus Toppmöller fired by the management, only assuring survival in the top level in their last game after appointing charismatic coach Klaus Augenthaler replacing inexperienced coach Thomas Hörster for the last game which they won ironically against Augenthaler's previous employer 1. FC Nürnberg. The 2003/04 season saw Bayer surge back toward the upper levels of the Bundesliga, eventually finishing third. |
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