After Thursday's friendly against Basaksehir, the Werkself moved down a gear or two: Recovery was the order of the day as was a lighter training regime. Then day seven at the training camp was over: Heiko Herrlich led two sessions at the training ground on Lake Zell – they were the final two outdoor sessions of this year's summer training camp. In the morning there was another 90-minute intensive workout covering tactics and moves. The Herrlich team was accompanied by loud music coming from the 'Austria Swim Open' on Lake Zell, just a stone's throw from the training ground. In the early evening there was an hour-long session on passing and finishing. It ended with the Werkself pros again busy signing autographs and posing for selfies. Then it was time to say goodbye to the Alois Latini Stadium.
After the first session, Herrlich let his players enjoy themselves for 20 minutes: There were stretches and penalties taken in the main square; Thorsten Kirschbaum, Mitchell Weiser, Kevin Volland and Kai Havertz took the opportunity to shoot hoops. Paulinho, Wendell, Charles Aránguiz and Lucas Alario took part in a cow bell challenge under the watchful eyes of the coaches. Moving images and the winners can be seen on the Bayer 04 Facebook page.
For the past three days, Lukas Hradecky has slowly been getting used to catching balls again following the operation on his jaw. Albeit in a controlled manner. In order to avoid any risks, Lukas wore a lacrosse mask in the morning session. After that, goalkeeping coach David Thiel and assistant coach Xaver Zembrod put the new Werkself number one through his paces with reaction and catching drills. The Finn looked to be enjoying himself from afar. But it was all about safety first.
The gap between training sessions enabled the journalists present to carry out interviews again: Charles Aránguiz, Lucas Alario, Paulinho, Dominik Kohr, Rambo Özcan and Heiko Herrlich patiently fielded questions from the external press and club media.
The training camp in Austria ends tomorrow (Sunday). Reason enough to load the first vans after the second session with the equipment that isn't required tomorrow. Heiko Herrlich and his coaches will lead a warm-up session at the team hotel. And then – after lunch – the group will head off in the direction of Grödig.
The idyllic location of the Goldberg Stadium provides the stage for the sixth pre-season friendly for the Werkself at 15.30 CET. The opponents are the Saudi Arabian top-flight team Al-Wahda Mecca. Bayer 04 are again laying on a special service for supporters back home – from about 15.20 CET, the match will be broadcast live on bayer04.de and the German Facebook page. To get the players in the mood for the friendly and all other forthcoming challenges there was another Werkself film night: This time, Heiko Herrlich showed his players the 'Borg vs McEnroe' biographical film. It covers the unforgettable Wimbledon encounter between the two tennis legends in 1980, which is still considered to be one of the best matches of all time.
Looking behind the scenes – was a common theme during the training camp on social media under the hashtag #B04inAustria. In addition to a bizarre trick shot from Julian Brandt, it was the turn of Lucas Alario to take over Instagram. It's worth a look – both on Snapchat and Twitter.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen will to have manage without forward Eliesse Ben Seghir. The Morocco international suffered a ligament injury in his left ankle before the AFCON final defeat against Senegal (0-1 a.e.t.).
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The VBL Club Championship 2025/26 continues. Tonight, 27 January (live on Twitch and on the Bayer 04 app from 18:00 CET), the Leverkusen eSports team will play the remaining three matches in the online preliminary round of Showdown Four. They are up against FC Kaiserslautern, SC Freiburg and the current club champions and Showdown Three winners RB Leipzig, with whom Bayer 04, club runners-up and Showdown One winners, shared some memorable moments, especially last year. The lowdown on our next opponents.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen have signed Swiss goalkeeper Jonas Omlin from Borussia Mönchengladbach. The 32-year-old joins the Werkself from the Lower Rhine Bundesliga club on loan to the end of the current season. This is the reaction of Bayer 04 to the injury to first choice keeper Mark Flekken, who faces a long spell on the sidelines.
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Welcome to Leverkusen, Jonas Omlin. Bayer 04 have signed the 32-year-old goalkeeper on loan from Bundesliga side Borussia Mönchengladbach until the end of the season. Managing director sport Simon Rolfes described the Swiss shot stopper, signed by the Werkself in reaction to the long-term absence of first choice keeper Mark Flekken, as an "internationally experienced keeper." Bayer04.de takes a closer look at the new signing, who will wear the number 18 jersey.
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Lucas Vázquez was the hero in Saturday's 1-0 home win against Werder Bremen, when the Spaniard scored his first Bundesliga goal to secure an important victory for Leverkusen. The 34-year-old right-sided recently met up with the Werkself magazine for an interview in the Düsseldorf restaurant Casa Galicia after the first few months of settling in to his new home in Germany. Over tapas, the five-time Champions League winner, who left Real Madrid in the summer after 18 years to continue his career at Bayer 04, spoke about his career to date, the new challenge in Leverkusen and the importance of family - and he paid a big compliment to the fans of his new club.
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