Jonathan Tah and Co. split up into groups of three for the day working in the Werkstatt, the Bayer 04 rehab and training centre at the BayArena, on a range of tests and checks. That included taking blood and measuring body fat as well hip strength measurements plus different diagnostic procedures to test coordination, mobility and stability.
Before clocking off, the Werkself players underwent spiroergometry to finish off. Wearing respirator masks, the players were put through their paces as they clocked up as many miles as possible on the treadmill to test their stamina levels.
The squad led by head coach Xabi Alonso return to the training ground for the first time on Friday 2 December. The first session with the ball starts at 10.30 CET on training pitches 1 and 2. The Alonso team have a second training session in the afternoon at 14.30 CET.
Both sessions are open to Black and Red fans but last-minute changes are possible.
Strengthening the Bayer 04 Leverkusen youth teams: Konstantinos Kotsifakis will join the Werkself from Bundesliga 2 club Hertha Berlin for the 2026/27 season, where he will be a permanent member of the Leverkusen U19 coaching set-up. The German-Greek will also take on an operational role in coaching the Bayer 04 Future Team. The 29-year-old was most recently head coach of the U17s at Hertha Berlin.
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Another award for the Bayer 04 head groundsman and staff: After coming top in the 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2024/25 seasons, the BayArena pitch came second in the Bundesliga Pitch of the Year ranking for the 2025/26 season. VfL Wolfsburg secured the top spot this year, with TSG Hoffenheim in third place.
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Opening opponents, derby weekends, the opponents in the season finale: This information and more will be available to Bayer 04 fans on Thursday, 2 July, when the 2026/27 Bundesliga fixture list is published.
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Rüdiger Vollborn has been at the club for 40 years, he holds the record number of Bundesliga appearances for the club (401) and is the only Bayer 04 player to have won both the UEFA Cup (1988) and the DFB Pokal (1993). And the Berliner stayed with the Werkself after ending his impressive playing career as he worked as a goalkeeping coach for the following nine years. Vollborn now works under the Bayer Cross as a fan liaison officer and club archivist. Since February 2021, the personal Black and Red lexicon takes Werkself fans under the heading of 'Rudi recounts...' on a brief trip through the history of Bayer 04 every month…
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