
The Werkself defender played in a back three alongside Niklas Süle and Matthias Ginter. The 23-year-old initially had little to do as Germany made an impressive start playing a high, pressing game. Leroy Sané scored the deserved opener on 12 minutes. Germany failed to maintain their early domination but recovered in the second half. Marco Reus doubled the lead on 62 minutes and he was replaced on 76 minutes by Julian Brandt. Kai Havertz remained on the bench against Belarus.
World Cup runners-up Croatia, with Tin Jedvaj in the starting eleven, beat Wales 2-1 in the Euro 2020 qualifier on Saturday night. Jedvaj was booked on 50 minutes. Lukas Hradecky was in goal for Finland as they looked to book a place at Euro 2020. The Werkself number one kept a clean sheet with Finland securing a 2-0 win against Bosnia-Herzegovina. Paulinho was also in action on Saturday for the Brazil U23s: In the final group game at the Maurice Revello Tournament, a youth tournament in Provence, Brazil beat Qatar 5-0 with Paulinho netting a double. That was on the back of 4-0 victories for the South Americans against France on Thursday and Guatemala last Sunday.
Aleksandar Dragovic played for Austria against Slovenia on Friday in the Euro 2020 qualifiers. Austria won 1-0 with Dragovic going the full distance. Julian Baumgartlinger missed out due to a late injury. "Julian Baumgartlinger suffered severe inflammation in his ankle that unfortunately rules him out for the games against Slovenia and North Macedonia," announced the Austrian FA on Twitter.
Chile won 2-1 in a friendly against Haiti on Friday. Charles Aránguiz came on just before the end of the game on 88 minutes. Jamaica faced the USA in a friendly. The Reggae Boyz won 1-0 with Leon Bailey an unused sub. The 21-year-old has to wait to make his international debut – he has another chance in the Gold Cup the week after next.
Next fixtures for our internationals:
Julian Brandt, Kai Havertz and Jonathan Tah (Germany)
Tuesday, 11 June (20.45 CET, Mainz): Germany v Estonia (Euro qualifier, Group C)
Jonathan Tah (Germany U21)
Monday, 17 June (21.00 CET, Udine): Germany U21 v Denmark U21 (Euros, Group stage)
Thursday, 20 June (21.00 CET, Trieste): Germany U21 v Serbia U21 (Euros, Group stage)
Sunday, 23 June (21.00 CET, Udine): Austria U21 v Germany U21 (Euros, Group stage)
Aleksandar Dragovic (Austria)
Monday, 10 June (20.45 CET, Skopje): North Macedonia v Austria (Euro qualifier, Group G)
Lukas Hradecky (Finland)
Tuesday, 11 June (20.45 CET, Vaduz): Liechtenstein v Finland (Euro qualifier, Group J)
Tin Jedvaj (Croatia)
Tuesday, 11 June (20.45 CET, Varaždin): Croatia v Tunisia (Friendly)
Charles Aránguiz (Chile)
Tuesday, 18 June (01.00 CET, Sao Paulo): Japan v Chile (Copa America, Group stage)
Saturday, 22 June (01.00 CET, Salvador): Ecuador v Chile (Copa America, Group stage)
Tuesday, 25 June (01.00 CET, Rio de Janeiro): Chile v Uruguay (Copa America, Group stage)
Leon Bailey (Jamaica)
Tuesday, 18 June (03.00 CET, Kingston): Jamaica v Honduras (Gold Cup, Group stage)
Saturday, 22 June (01.00 CET, Houston): El Salvador v Jamaica (Gold Cup, Group stage)
Wednesday, 26 June (02.00 CET, Los Angeles): Jamaica v Curaçao (Gold Cup, Group stage)
Paulinho (Brasilien U23)
Tuesday 11 June to Thursday 13 June: Play-offs (Maurice Revello Tournament)
Isaac Kiese Thelin (Sweden – on stand-by)
Monday, 10 June (20.45 CET, Madrid): Spain v Sweden (Euro qualifier, Group F)


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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Fun, games and promising talent: At the fourth Bayer 04 Junior Girls’ Talent Day at the Kurtekotten training centre, 90 football-mad girls had the chance to put themselves forward for the Werkself youth teams. During a 90-minute training session, children born between 2011 and 2019 had the chance to demonstrate their skills.
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Despite the international break, numerous Werkself fans turned up at the BayArena on Saturday 3 October. The occasion: Bayer 04, together with Bayer Vital and main sponsor BarmeniaGothaer, organised a Health Day. In the stadium’s Premium Lounge, guests listened to fascinating talks on the subject of cancer, featuring, amongst others, Bayer 04 record appearance holder Rüdiger Vollborn and former Werkself player Hans Sarpei. Afterwards, young and old alike enjoyed interactive stations such as a grip strength test and eye pupil test.
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In issue #56 of Werkself Magazine, Afonso Moreira offers some interesting insights into his home country, Portugal, as part of the ‘Sag mal’ (Tell me) feature. Among other things, the 21-year-old talks about his favourite places in the country on the Iberian Peninsula, the local cuisine and music, as well as heroes and historical figures beyond the world of football. ‘Sag mal’ with Afonso Moreira!
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