While all is quiet at club level for Bayer 04 since the last day of the 2020/21 Bundesliga season, there is international action at the moment. Several Werkself players have been in action for their countries. That also applies to the two South American Werkself players Charles Aránguiz and Exequiel Palacios. In the World Cup qualifiers, Chile with our captain, who played the full 90 minutes, drew 1-1 with Bolivia. The Black and Red midfield dynamo Exequiel Palacios came on as a substitute for Giovanni Lo Celso on 54 minutes in the game between the 'Albiceleste' and Colombia. This match also ended in a draw for Palacios and the Argentina national side – with a 2-2 scoreline after the team under head coach Lionel Scaloni gave away a 2-0 lead.
Another Werkself player was on international duty 10,000 kilometres away in the Generali Arena in Prague. In a friendly ahead of the forthcoming European Championship, the Czech team with Patrik Schick faced Albania. The Leverkusen striker opened the scoring on 18 minutes to set his team on course for a 3-1 victory.
Aleksandar Dragovic and Julian Baumgartlinger (Austria) were in the squad on Sunday for a friendly against Slovakia – the match ended in a goalless draw. The two Leverkusen players did not play. The Werkself shot-stopper Lukas Hradecky was between the sticks for the Eagle Owls. The Finland team under coach Markku Kanerva lost 1-0 to Estonia. Joel Pohjanpalo, on loan at Union Berlin last season, played for 61 minutes.
Talking about the European Championship: Werkself supporters will see one or two familiar faces at home on TV during the tournament that opens on Friday, 11 June with the match between Italy and Turkey (kick-off: 21.00 CEST). The former Bayer 04 youth and assistant coach Peter Hyballa is working for ZDF as a TV pundit for the Euros. Hyballa, who worked at the Performance Centre and with the senior squad from 2014 to 2016, will mainly contribute his tactical expertise.
The former Werkself defender Rudolf Wojtowicz is 65 years old today. The Pole, who was a member of the Black and Red defence from 1982 to 1986, made 80 appearances for the Werkself in four seasons and scored two goals along the way. Wojtowicz has been working as a scout for VfL Wolfsburg since 2010. In March 2021 he collapsed on the way to a scouting mission and was taken to hospital. Bayer 04 wish Rudolf many happy returns and all the best.
The Werkself need a win in their penultimate match of the season at RB Leipzig on Monday evening (18:00 CEST) to keep their hopes of third place alive until the final day. After Eintracht Frankfurt lost on Saturday, Roberto Pätzold's side can close the gap on their rivals to two points and leave it all to play for next Sunday.
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Werkself TV shows the highlights of Bayer 04's 1-3 loss at VfB Stuttgart on Matchday 33 of the 2025/26 Bundesliga season...
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Down to fifth from fourth place despite taking an early lead: in the head-to-head for a Champions League spot, Bayer 04 were 1-0 up at VfB Stuttgart with just a minute played thanks to an Aleix Garcia strike, but ultimately lost 3-1 (2-1) to the more determined hosts. It meant the Swabians leapfrogged the Werkself in the Bundesliga table on the penultimate matchday.
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Today sees Bayer 04 go head-to-head with their next direct rivals in the race for Champions League qualification (kick-off 15:30 CEST). Opponents Stuttgart are currently fifth in the table, level on points with the Werkself but one place below them due to a three-goal inferior goal difference. The Black and Reds' record at Bad Cannstatt tells a clearer story: they've not lost at VfB for over 16 years. One important factor in securing what would be three crucial points away from home is Leverkusen's strength on the counter-attack. Whilst Stuttgart are also extremely dangerous going forward, they will be without their captain. Today’s matchday news.
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