At 5.30 in the morning, the three groundsmen at FC Zell am See started work on clearing water off the pitch at the Alois Latini Stadium. Equipped with shovels and wheelbarrows plus sand, the trio worked hard to ensure the Werkself had the best possible conditions for the two sessions planned for Monday.
Just in time for the first training session in the morning, not only was the pitch mostly in good condition but the cloud cover over Lake Zeller had also disappeared. Head coach Gerardo Seoane welcomed Karim Bellarabi back to the pitch for the first time since Friday. The winger has recently suffered with slight muscle problems.
Euro 2020 player Julian Baumgartlinger was back on the pitch with his teammates for the first time in the pre-season. After the Round of 16 exit against European champions Italy (2-1 a.e.t..) was given the opportunity to recover with a break – and he has returned now full of zest for action. The stalwart lead from the front in his first session in Zell am See.
Baumgartlinger plus Lucas Alario and Zidan Sertdemir completed most of the training session with the squad but the trio left out the final pat of the workout.
The morning session was followed by media interviews for seven players plus head coach Seoane and sporting director Simon Rolfes. In the outside area of the Tauern Spa, Lukas Hradecky and Co. answered questions from the journalists. Jonathan Tah was a guest of bayer04.de and his interview will be available to read tomorrow morning (Tuesday).
Goalkeeper Andrey Lunev, who joined the Werkself in the summer from Russian champions Zenit St. Petersburg, spent his afternoon learning German. The 29-year-old was working on the days of the week in his hotel room. Following his language session, the Russian mastered ‘Black or Red’.
The afternoon brought the second workout for the Werkself at the Alois Latini Stadium. This time the focus was on fun – and there was fervent work with the head:
The team, coaches, staff and delegation rounded off day 04 in Austria with a barbecue at the team hotel before the players then headed for their rooms.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen have extended the contract with U19 midfielder Jonah Berghoff ahead of schedule. The Germany U18 international has signed professional terms with the club to 30 June 2030.
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With sixth place at the end of the 2025/26 Bundesliga campaign, Bayer 04 ended a season in the top third of the table for the ninth time in a row. While the Werkself were narrowly eliminated in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 by eventual finalists Arsenal, the Black and Reds reached the semi-finals of the DFB Pokal for the third season in succession. As in previous years, you once again have the opportunity to vote for your Player of the Season. Voting is exclusively for Bayer 04 Club members and only via the Bayer 04 app up to and including 11 June.
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With 46 points in the Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga, the Bayer 04 Women’s team once again broke the previous season's club record and ended up in fifth place - 15 wins is also a record. As in previous years, you now have the opportunity to vote for your Player of the Season. Voting is open exclusively to Bayer 04 Club members and only via the Bayer 04 app by 11 June.
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The guests at the Scala Club in Leverkusen were amazed when host Reiner Calmund suddenly brought the Managing Director of Sport at Bayer 04, Simon Rolfes, and record Werkself appearance maker Rüdiger Vollborn onto the stage. As part of the show "An Evening with Football & Friends", organised by long-serving Bayer 04 managing director and general manager Calmund, the two surprise guests drew plenty of applause - and provided great entertainment in exciting conversations about the past and future.
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