That was on the agenda after the strenuous training sessions of the past week and Lehnhoff joined in briefly. For many older fans it was a nice reminder of the 90s when Lehnhoff was one of the most feared wingers in the Bundesliga.
Hard work in the morning
In addition to the football tennis tournament the current Werkself generation had a relaxed athletic session under assistant coach Oliver Bartlett. The recovery session clearly did the players good with something for everyone in the recent sessions including rugby training on Monday. “It’s good to have a day where it’s not so hectic,” admitted Kevin Kampl. Roger Schmidt and his fellow coaches gave the players the afternoon off on day six in Austria.
All change in the afternoon
After lunch, a group went paddling in Lake Zell right next to the training ground and another played frisbee golf. Several players like Kampl just wanted to explore and enjoy the beautiful landscape while Ömer Toprak joined new signing Rambo Öczan to the golf course near to the team hotel Tauern Spa in Zell am See-Kaprun. Öczan filmed a rather less serious attempt by his team-mate to hit the ball and posted it on Instagram much to the amusement of the former Leverkusen players and talented amateur golfers Sebastian Boenisch and Gonzalo Castro. Toprak took it in good part and responded with laughing emojis.
Schade welcomes fans
At the same time Michael Schade entertained the travelling Werkself fans at the team hotel. The Bayer 04 CEO invited some 50 supporters to coffee, cake and cold drinks and they listened intently to the short welcome address from the 63-year-old. Schade provided a review of last term’s successful campaign and also looked forward: “We are all kean to start the new season and that’s not far off. I would be happy to have a busy fixture list from now to May as we are once again focussing on the cup competitions: We want to get to Berlin again and reach the last sixteen in the Champions League once more.” The fans were happy to hear those words and they also spoke to the currently injured Stefan Kießling (hip) afterwards. Bayer 04 then invited all sponsors and members of the media to the traditional evening meal.
Four players leave
Four players left the training camp early on Tuesday evening: The 17-year-olds Atakan Akkaynak, Kai Havertz, Sam Schreck and keeper Tomasz Kucz left three days earlier than their senior team-mates as planned as they need to return to Leverkusen to work with the new U19 squad. Everybody agreed the four youngsters made a good impression in Austria.
Two coaches visit
The Werkself were cheered on by the kids attending the Bayer 04 soccer school on Tuesday. The football camp has been held in Zell am See every year and always attracts loads of children from the surrounding area. It is no surprise they are keen to get the autographs of Chicharito and Co. and particularly Julian Baumgartlinger, Kevin Kampl and André Ramalho who are well known and popular in SalzburgerLand. The training sessions was also observed by two renowned German coaches from the stand: Ralf Loose (Dynamo Dresden and Preußen Münster) plus Frank Kramer (Fortuna Düsseldorf, Greuther Fürth and TSG Hoffenheim)i.
#B04inAustria – Everything at the click of a button
Brian the Lion was out and about on Tuesday. The mascot used the afternoon off to join Stefan Kießling and Rudi Völler in the Bayer 04 cable car to explore the Areitalm. Panoramic photos can be seen using the hashtag #B04inAustria on Twitter. You can also discover a wealth of other information there on the #Werkself and #Bayer04. Other stories, photos and videos can be found on Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat. Just log on.
Whether it's sport or his private live: Captain Edmond Tapsoba tells us his top three personal favourites in twelve categories in edition #56 of the Werkself Magazine. The defender had to answer as quickly as he reacts on the pitch. 'On the Podium' with Edmond Tapsoba!
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“Year after year, this is an incredibly valuable gathering, both in terms of the content covered and the opportunity for mutual discussion,” stressed Bayer 04 goalkeeping coach David Thiel in his welcoming address at this year’s goalkeeping coaches’ meeting. This was the third time in four seasons that the event had been held at the BayArena. Organised by the German Football Association (DFB), the meeting brought together goalkeeping coaches from the Bundesliga, Bundesliga 2 and the 3rd division from the west region. For the first time this year, goalkeeping coaches from the youth performance centres (NLZ) were also present. Bayer 04 fitness coach Markus Müller provided fascinating insights into the specific fitness training carried out with the Werkself’s goalkeepers.
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A floodlit derby, two further night games and a top-of-the-table clash on a Saturday afternoon: The German Football Association (DFB) has confirmed the exact dates for four further matchdays in the Google Pixel Women’s Bundesliga. This means all fixtures for the Bayer 04 women’s team up to the end of the year, as well as the first two in 2027, are now confirmed.
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It was another incredibly close call in the end: The second showdown in the 2026/27 VBL Club Championship saw the #B04eSports team once again narrowly miss out on a place in the top 16 of the preliminary round – and with it, a spot in the in-person knockout stage. It was a bitter blow: Marc and Sean Landwehr again fell just short, despite being level on points with their rivals. As was the case last month, their weaker record across the twelve individual matches in the six preliminary round fixtures proved decisive.
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