
“Exequiel Palacios has established himself as an incredibly important player at the Werkself. The fact he was a key member of the Argentina team at the World Cup in Qatar underlines his qualities as a team and individual player,” said Simon Rolfes, Bayer 04 sporting managing director. “Exequiel has often and successfully put his exceptional power and aggression on the pitch as well as his strategic and playing qualities to the benefit of our team. We are convinced he can assume an even more key role in the future.”
The 24-year-old Palacios believes his original assessment of Bayer 04 is fully justified after three and a half years at Leverkusen. “The club has fulfilled everything they promised from when I signed,” said Palacios. “I really feel at home here in Leverkusen and I’ve been able to keep on developing as a player. And the great reputation of Bayer 04 back home has ensured I’ve always remained in the reckoning with the Albiceleste. I’ve become a South American champion and World Cup winner with Argentina. It’s clear I want to win trophies with the Black and Reds now.”

Bayer 04 picked up their first three points in the current Champions League campaign on matchday 4 in the league phase with a courageous and determined display in a 1-0 win at Benfica (1:0). "It was a hugely important win," said coach Kasper Hjulmand after the game, paying tribute to his players for their battling performance right to the end. The Werkself defended resolutely right to the end and kept out off shot after shot. Keeper Mark Flekken said: "We were determined to get these three points and gave everything we had on the pitch!" Read on for more reaction plus the facts and stats on the away win at the Portuguese record champions in the Werkself review.
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The second European away game takes the Werkself to the Portuguese capital Lisbon. Kasper Hjulmand's team will face record champions Benfica on Wednesday, 5 November (kick-off: 20:00 GMT, 21:00 CET) on matchday 4 in the league phase of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League. As usual, we will take you along on the #aCROSSeurope journey and report from Lisbon. The times given are Central European Time.
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Werkself TV shows highlights of the 1-0 win for Bayer 04 at Benfica on matchday 4 in the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 league phase...
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The Werkself beat Benfica 1-0 on Matchday 4 of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League league phase to seal three crucial points! Both teams had promising chances in the first half, but the contest was goalless at half-time. Substitute Patrik Schick headed in to score the only goal after the restart (65’). The home side went looking for an equaliser but Bayer 04 defended passionately to see out the storm.
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Werkself-TV shows the highlights of the Bayer 04 women's 2-1 win against Hamburger SV on the 9th matchday of the Google Pixel Frauen-Bundesliga 2025/26.
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