The Werkself started day two with a session on the St. Louis CITY Soccer Club training ground in bright sunshine under clear blue skies. A jocular warm-up routine was followed by passing and shooting drills for the 17 players on tour under the direction of head coach Xabi Alonso – and in front of club officials of St. Louis CITY SC including German sporting director Lutz Pfannenstiel.
While Jonathan Tah and Co. trained on the pitch, the St. Louis CITY SC players were in a neighbouring weights room. The players of the future MLS side had a perfect view of Wednesday's opponents through a large window and some of them then came onto the pitch to take part in a challenge.
Five players from each team took part in a penalty shootout. The following St. Louis players were involved: Josh Dolling from England, the Brazilian Célio Pompeu, Isak Jensen from Denmark, goalkeeper Michael Creek (USA) plus former FC Köln player Tomas Ostrák from Czechia. The Bayer 04 keeprs Andrey Lunev and Niklas Lomb took turns in goal and the other four players involved were Zidan Sertdemir, Adam Hlozek, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Timothy Fosu-Mensah.
Sporting managing director Simon Rolfes fielded questions from American camera crews at the Werkself training session. "We are really excited about Wednesday's match at the new CITYPARK Stadium," declared the 40-year-old. On the collaboration with Bayer AG, who employ over 6,000 people in St. Louis county, and St. Louis CITY SC Rolfes said: "A great affinity has developed that we want to continue to strengthen and extend in the future."
After lunch at the team hotel, the Werkself had the next item on the agenda: a visit to the Bayer AG research centre in Chesterfield some 30 minutes from the team hotel. A guided tour through the facilities and research laboratories was followed by a presentation of the players, the head coach Xabi Alonso and the two managing directors Fernando Carro and Simon Rolfes.
Over 1,000 members of staff at the Bayer site in St Louis County welcomed the Bayer 04 player and officials to the stage with loud applause and they were wearing red Bayer 04 shirts. The entertaining event was rounded off with an autograph session plus a chance to take selfies. Further details are HERE.
Five players, the Werkself coaching staff and several staff members went on from the Bayer site to the youth football club Lou Fusz Athletic. Children and teenagers were able to work on their football skills in outstanding conditions in the club's huge indoor training centre.
Most of the 100 girls and boys aged from 8 to 18 pulled on Bayer 04 shirts – and took part in a training session led by professionals. Xabi Alonso's two assistant coaches Sebastian Parrilla and Alberto Encinas coached the youngsters. They were joined by honorary captain Stefan Kießling, goalkeeping coach David Thiel and team liaison manager Hans-Peter Lehnhoff who looked after several small groups in a range of drills. A practice match followed at the end of the session.
The Bayer 04 tour party had an unusual location for their evening meal: the St. Louis zoo. Amongst over 14,000 animals from 500 different species, the visitors from Leverkusen together with selected Bayer employees enjoyed a sociable evening together in the events hall at the zoo.
The third day of the #Bayer04USATour 2022 has several highlights: In the morning there is a training session plus the pre-match press conference with the coaches of the two teams ahead of the game against St. Louis CITY SC. That is followed by an afternoon off with the chance to go sightseeing and the Bayer 04 group will watch a college basketball match in the evening between Saint Louis Billikens and the Memphis Tigers.
Less than a year ago, Kerim Alajbegovic moved from the Bayer 04 U19s to Austrian top-flight club FC Red Bull Salzburg. The forward’s development since then has been impressive. In 36 matches, including in the UEFA Europa League, the 18-year-old has scored 14 goals. In the summer, Alajbegovic, now a Bosnia international, will return to Leverkusen - and thus not only achieve the next milestone still early in his career, but also enrich the Werkself squad with his footballing versatility and determination.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen have extended the contract with forward Nathan Tella ahead of schedule. The versatile 26-year-old, who can be deployed as a right winger, false nine or left winger, has penned a new contract to 30 June 2031. Tella joined the Werkself from Championship club Southampton in 2023. His previous contract ran to the summer of 2028.
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Nathan Tella has extended his contract with Bayer 04 to 2031. In an interview with Werkself TV, the 26-year-old talks about fulfilling his dreams, his positive outlook on life and his goals for the future. He answers the questions in English - all except the last one, which he addresses directly to the fans...
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In the final international break in the current 2025/26 campaign, Bayer 04 striker Patrik Schick with Czechia will be battling for a place at the World Cup. Meanwhile, national teams that have already qualified, include other Werkself players called up, are involved in friendlies in the build-up to the World Cup. Read on for an overview of the Leverkusen internationals and their match dates.
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The Werkself kicked off the final international break of the current season on Monday morning with the first of three open training sessions this week. While eleven Bayer 04 players will be away on international duty in the coming days, the other players will be working together in Leverkusen. The next challenge in the Bundesliga awaits on Saturday, 4 April (kick-off: 15:30 CEST) with the home game against VfL Wolfsburg.
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