
And they also appear to be getting on really well off the pitch. In a photo shoot for the new Bayer 04 catalogue the strike duo posed for a number of photos and enjoyed every minute of it. At the end they went on their mobile phones to send a message to Werkself fans across the world from the training camp in Zell am See-Kaprun.
>> Click here for the new official merchandise
Goals galore in practice match
Volland and Chicharito looked sharp on the training ground before the photo shoot. A practice match with two 30-minute halves at the Alois Latini Stadium they played up front in the team in red training tops and managed to score a goal or two. The friendly match against Regional League side SC Teutonia on Saturday night was abandoned on twelve minutes due to a thunderstorm.
>> The practice match was shown live on Facebook and is available on demand <<
All clear for Wendell
There was a scare at the end of the first training session on Sunday. Brazilian defender Wendell fell awkwardly and had to limp off the pitch. That was a reminder of his serious injury at the end of April but he was given the all clear in the afternoon. He took it easy in the second session working on his own but he should return to full training today – the same applies to Julian Baumgartlinger who has yet to train with the Werkself in his own country due to a groin injury.
Leno meets Özcan
His fellow countryman Ramazan Özcan also missed out for a few days with a slight groin problem but ‘Rambo’ was almost fully fit again on Sunday so he was able to train with new team-mate Bernd Leno for the first time. Leno returned from holiday at the weekend after the European Championships.
Black and red cable car
The club colours of black and red are a common sight around the team hotel in Kaprun and the training ground in Zell am See. A valley station on the Areitbahn saw Stefan Kießling board a black and red car with a Bayer 04 logo last year as one of the first to make the journey up the mountain.
#B04inAustria - “What does Wuchtel mean?”
Anybody looking to improve their knowledge of Austrian German can follow a beginners language course with Julian Baumgartlinger and Rambo Özcan. Every day, the two new signings introduce fans to a new word commonly used in Austria online under the hashtag #B04inAustria . You can also follow #B04inAustria to keep up-to-date with the movements of the Werkself in SalzburgerLand. It’s worth a look. There is also a video message from Chicharito and Kevin Volland.


The Bayer 04 women’s team secured a win in the friendly during the international break. Without a total of eight international players, coach Roberto Pätzold’s team defeated Bundesliga 2 side Borussia Mönchengladbach 3–1 at the Kurtekotten Training Centre, thanks to goals from Lobke Loonen (1’, penalty), Caroline Kehrer (41') and Valentina Mädl (66').
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Bayer 04 will have to manage without striker Christian Kofane in the coming weeks. The 20-year-old sustained a muscle injury to his left thigh on international duty with the Cameroon national team during the recent international break. This will prevent him from playing in the upcoming Werkself matches.
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FSV Mainz 05 went into the international break on the back of an away win at Borussia Mönchengladbach. Currently sixth in the table, the Rheinhessen side – who have been impressive on the road – now aim to continue their good start to the Bundesliga campaign at home when they face the Werkself on Saturday, 10 October (kick-off: 15:30 CEST). In terms of squad selection, Urs Fischer once again has more options at his disposal. Up front, the Mainz coach is likely to continue relying on what is currently the league’s most successful strike partnership. The lowdown on our next opponents.
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Exciting experiences and exclusive insights into the Werkself and the BayArena awaited the young footballers from the BA04 Football Academy Guangzhou in China during their visit to the Rhineland this week. As well as taking part in a joint training session with the Bayer 04 Football Academy, the youngsters marvelled at the Bundesliga club’s stadium during a guided tour. The highlight of the visit was a private press conference with former Bayer 04 striker Stefan Kießling, during which he shared tips from his own career with the young players. On Saturday afternoon, 10 October, the group will round off their visit by supporting the Werkself in the away match in Mainz.
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Fans ask, Carolin Simon answers: As part of Bayer 04’s second Ask Me Anything (AMA) session on Reddit, the Leverkusen captain took questions from the community. The full-back, who returned to the club this summer after ten years away, set aside an hour and a half for the Q&A session with fans, offering a very personal insight into, amongst other things, her daily life as a footballer and her role as captain, as well as her passion for Pokémon.
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