The players who have travelled certainly have the quality required. Cristiano Ronaldo, Gonzalo Higuain, Paulo Dybala, Gianluigi Buffon – they all landed with the rest of the squad at Cologne/Bonn Airport this afternoon. The German players Emre Can (not in Champions League) and Sami Khedira (injured) have stayed behind in Northern Italy. Also absent are Matthijs de Ligt, who has been rested, plus the injured Giorgio Chiellini, Aaron Ramsey, Douglas Costa as well as the former Bayern Munich player Mario Mandzukic who is ineligible.
Coach Sarri will only announce his line-up on the day of the match but the 60-year-old did make it clear at the pre-match press conference: “Of course, we have already qualified but I would still like to see a good performance from my team in this competition.” And midfield maestro Miralem Pjanic stressed at the press conference that the Juve players “have an absolute winning mentality and want to win every game.”
In response to questions about a possible fraught relationship between Sarri and the team, Pjanic had an answer ready. “We have full confidence in our new coach. After five years of Allegri (former coach Massimiliano Allegri, ed.) it’s clear not everything can work straightaway. You can’t expect perfection after five months of working together,” said the 29-year-old, who then talked about the opponents Bayer 04: “We’ve already played Leverkusen. They are a very strong team. They are at home and can still qualify – they will try everything. It won’t be easy for us.”
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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Exciting exhibitions, stimulating talk, and a great response: as part of the 22nd Leverkusen Kunstnacht (Art Night), Bismarckstraße also became an art promenade on Friday evening. Stadioneck and Schwadbud made their debut at the traditional event, whilst the Lev-Szene 86 clubhouse on Konrad-Adenauer-Platz was taking part for the third time. In Schlebusch, too, there was art on display with links to Bayer 04. Football wasn’t always the main focus, however.
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Werkself-TV shows the highlights of Bayer 04 Women's 3-2 win against Werder Bremen on Matchday 6 of the 2026/27 Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga.
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