
Burkina Faso were in the Round of 16 as group runners-up where they faced Gabon who also finished second in their group. In the Cameroonian city of Limbe, Tapsoba’s teammate Bertrand Traore – who used to play for Chelsea in England – missed a penalty early on (18'). The same player then opened the scoring for Burkina Faso. As a strike by Gabon was ruled out just before half-time following the intervention of VAR, they took the lead into the break.
The chances of winning increased for Tapsoba and Co-in the middle of the second half when a Gabon player was shown a second yellow card. However, they conceded a late equaliser in added time – leading to extra time. No more goals were scored. The Leverkusen central defender converted his penalty as the third taker and the game ended with a much celebrated 7-6 victory. Congratulations, Eddy.
In the quarter-finals, Burkina Faso face Tunisia, including FC Köln player Ellyes Skhiri, who surprisingly beat Nigeria 1-0. The match on Saturday, 29 January kicks off at 20.00 CET. The streaming service DAZN will broadcast the match live.
And the second Bayer 04 player to start in the Africa Cup of Nations is also still in the competition: Odilon Kossounou with the Ivory Coast play their Round of 16 tie on Wednesday, 26 January (kick-off: 17.00 CET – also live on DAZN). They are up against record winners Egypt including Liverpool superstar Mohamed Salah.

The German Football Association (DFB) has officially recognised Bayer 04 as a centre for the development of female talent for the 2026/27 season. The club was awarded that role on 1 January 2026, and this status has now been renewed.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen have sold young defender Andrea Natali to AZ Alkmaar on permanent terms. The 18-year-old Italian was on loan at the Dutch club last season, where he mainly played for the reserve team in the second division.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen have loaned new signing Luca Erlein to newly promoted FC Energie Cottbus for the 2026/27 season. This will give him the opportunity to play in Bundesliga 2. The club signed the 19-year-old right-back on a permanent basis last week, on a contract to 30 June 2030.
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Trophies as a youth, appearances in the pro game and his first taste of international competition: new arrival Luca Erlein, who has been signed from TSG Hoffenheim, can already look back on some remarkable achievements and moments in his fledgling career. We take a closer look at the 19-year-old right-back, who can also fill other roles across the defensive line.
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