What is apparent from the current contact restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic has now been formally confirmed by the DFB committee: Fixtures to the end of the year in the U19 and U17 Youth Bundesliga competitions have been suspended. The DFB is now investigating different scenarios dependent on the development of the pandemic to see if fixtures in these leagues can be resumed.
The Bayer 04 U19s go into the winter break in eighth position having won two of their four games. The U17s are in the same position in the U17 Bundesliga West. That Leverkusen youth side have played two games less than the other teams and collected a total of seven points in their three games.
From youth to the established: Julian Baumgartlinger has increasingly developed into a heading expert in the Bosz team. The 32-year-old scored the winning goal at the near post from a corner in the 3-2 victory at Nice – and he repeated the successful move at Schalke making it 2-0 from a corner taken by Leon Bailey. As the captain of the Austria team as also stood out as a distributor and enforcer, both kicker as well as the Bild newspaper have included him in their respective teams of the day. Both journals also nominate Lukas Hradecky including for saving a penalty taken by Steven Skrzybski.
In spite of the narrow 3-2 lead for the Werkself, head coach Peter Bosz showed his confidence into young home-grown talents in Nice: With 67 minutes on the clock, 17-year-old Emrehan Gedikli, who started at Leverkusen with the U8s, was able to make his second appearance for the first-team. And Cem-Tuna Türkmen also played. The 18-year-old made his first team debut on the Côte d'Azur and performed well just like his teammate Gedikli.
After his first appearance for the senior squad, Türkmen – like Gedikli – is now listed on bayer04.de both with the first-team and the U19s. Click HERE for his player profile.
The BayArena has been a hive of activity in recent days with some 4,000 Christmas gifts being packed and distributed. In addition to chocolate, Christmas hats and club scarves, the packages also include four lights to illuminate the advent period. The packages will be distributed to different Leverkusen institutions over the next few days taking account of the hygiene protocols.
The 3-2 win for the Werkself at Nice was the fifth defeat in succession for the South French side. The day after the clash with the Black and Reds, the club officials drew their conclusions and ended the contract with head coach Patrick Vieira. The former World Cup winner and European Champion took over at Nice in 2018/19 from the current Borussia Dortmund coach Lucien Favre. The successor to the 44-year-old is Vieira's assistant coach Adrien Ursea. On Sunday, for the first time under Ursea, Nice drew 0-0 with third from bottom Stade Reims.
Bayer 04 honorary captain Ulf Kirsten is collecting for a good cause: To offer something special for donors to his 'Ulf Kirsten Foundation', the three-time top goalscorer in Germany has created his own gin with his son Benjamin. The duo have bottled a total of 99 examples. Kirsten's foundation mainly supports youth players.
There is plenty of football to look forward to next summer: The last Bundesliga match day of the current season is on 22 May 2020. The Euros start on 11 June with the final exactly a month later ending the pan-European nations tournament.
Directly after the European Championships, or in the event of a national team being knocked out, the international players will go on holiday but possibly not for very long. As recently announced by the DFB, the 2021/22 Bundesliga season starts on 13 August.
The winter break next year begins on 19 December and ends on seven January. The Bundesliga champions will be crowned on 14 May 2022. The DFB Cup final in Berlin will be played a week later on 21 May.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen have loaned U19 midfielder Jeremiah Mensah to Dutch second-tier side Roda JC Kerkrade for one year. The 18-year-old Germany youth international has a long-term contract at the club to 2031.
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Bayer 04 kick off the final phase of their 2026/27 pre-season preparations with a friendly against Premier League club Nottingham Forest. Head coach Carles Martínez’s team will take to the pitch at the City Ground today, Wednesday 12 August (kick-off: 8.45 pm/7.45 pm local time). Werkself-TV will broadcast the match live and in full exclusively for Bayer 04 members via livestream from 8.35 pm...
Bayer 04 Leverkusen have signed Argentina international Facundo Medina. The defender, who can play both at left-back and in a more central position in the back line, has signed a contract with Bayer 04 to 30 June 2031. The 1.84-metre-tall World Cup runner-up, who will wear the number 2 shirt, joins the club from French top-flight side Olympique de Marseille.
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Villa Fiorito, River Plate, Ligue 1, the World Cup final and now Bayer 04: Facundo Medina’s life story so far has been shaped by special places, clubs, matches and names. One of them is Diego Maradona, who, like Medina, hailed from the south of Buenos Aires. Another is Exequiel Palacios, his former team-mate at River Plate, who was raving about Bayer 04 to him as recently as the World Cup in North America. Medina has now taken the plunge into the Bundesliga and, as an Argentine World Cup runner-up, has joined Bayer 04 from Olympique de Marseille this week. It is set to be the next successful chapter in his career. Leverkusen’s new number 2 brings with him a South American mentality and passion, a wealth of experience from many years in Ligue 1, and a fascinating story to the Rhineland – and to a club where the 1.84-metre-tall left-footed player will be reunited with Palacios and several other familiar faces.
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Shortly after signing his contract with Bayer 04, new signing Facundo Medina spoke to Werkself.tv about his first impressions of the club, his expectations and his conversations with his Argentine compatriot Exequiel Palacios. The defender also reveals what the fans can look forward to. Welcome to Leverkusen, Facu!
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