Instead it was to a bar in the centre of Cologne for some "hair of the dog" Kolsch beer and to watch Everton, inevitably, get beat by Newcastle on the bar's big screen.
Cologne was the base as today's game was Bayer Leverkusen v Hamburg, Leverkusen being a 15 minute train ride from Cologne. Both sides have had an indifferent start to the season and at the start of play Leverkusen were in 8th place, whilst Hamburg were down in 16th.
This was probably the best game of the tour thus far as both teams fought out an exciting 2-2 draw.A heavily deflected Andre Schurrle free kick after 5 minutes gave the homesters the lead. A move instigated by Michael Ballack led to a tap in from Lars Bender, after 20 minutes, to make it 2-0 and Leverkusen were in complete control. I suspected a rout might be on the cards as Hamburg looked a shambles.
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| The logo of Friedrich Bayer, the pharmaceutical company from whose sports club Leverkeusen originated in 1904 |
Against the run of play though, Hamburg found a way back into the game when Heiko Westermann headed home a free kick after 34 minutes. This galvanised the visitors and they really should have been level going into the break as they now dominated the remainder of the half.
Hamburg weren't to be denied and after 58 minutes they were level when Marcell Jansen fired home. The game was now end-to-end and both teams squandered good chances to grab the victory but, in the end, both had to settle for a point.
It was another enjoyable evening at another impressive stadium.
Bundesliga
Bayer Leverkusen 2-2 Hamburg
Attendance: 30,210
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