FC Porto are currently on an eleven-day training camp at the Kamen-Kaiserau Sports Centre near Dortmund. Their squad includes internationally famous players like Iker Casillas, Hector Herrera and Ruben Neves. FC Porto have regularly played European football for years. They lifted the European Cup in 1987 and the Champions League in 2004 plus the UEFA Cup and the Europa League (2003, 2011). Porto have won the Portuguese league 31 times and 16 domestic cup competitions.
The team us managed by Nuno Santo. The young Portuguese coach is successor to Julen Lopetegui who is moving to manage the Spanish national team. Under Lopetegui FC Porto finished third in the league behind Benfica and Sporting Lisbon last term putting them in the play-offs for the Champions League.
Bayer 04 are familiar with that scenario from the previous two Champions League campaigns. This year is a different story with pre-season building up to competitive matches in the DFB Cup and then the Bundesliga. This fifth friendly may give fans the opportunity to see Tin Jedvaj, Admir Mehmedi and Charles Aránguiz plus U19 European Championship players Lukas Boeder and Benny Henrichs in action. All five returned to training this week.
Advice to fans
Hosts SV Bergisch Gladbach 09 have announced that nationwide stadium bans apply to Wednesday night's match against FC Porto at the Belkaw Arena.
Striker Delice Boboy will leave Bayer 04 Leverkusen at the end of the season and move to Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga rivals RB Leipzig. The 18-year-old is taking up a release clause in her contract one year before its expiry.
Show moreWerkself-TV shows the highlights of Bayer 04's 2-4 defeat against Borussia Dortmund on the 33rd matchday of the Bundesliga 2024/25...
Show moreBayer 04 lost their final home game of the 2024/25 Bundesliga season 4-2 against Borussia Dortmund. The Werkself started in dominant fashion and eventually went ahead after half an hour through Jeremie Frimpong. But Dortmund turned things around before the break and then hit two more quickfire goals in the second half. Jonas Hofmann got one back late on for the hosts in the penultimate fixture of the campaign and the last home outing for head coach Xabi Alonso and defensive stalwart Jonathan Tah.
Show moreWerkself-TV shows the highlights of the Bayer 04 women's 1-3 loss at VfL Wolfsburg on the 22nd matchday of the Google Pixel Frauen-Bundesliga 2024/25...
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