Happy faces all round: On Thursday morning, the Werkself made their way to the Ranken Jordan rehab facility, which is known as a bridging hospital. Children still needing care before returning home are cared for there.
The Werkself players including Kerem Demirbay, Nadiem Amiri and Karim Bellarabi spent a lot of time with the children, playing and talking to them. Bob Pritts, CEO of the Ranken Jordan Hospital, was impressed and touched at the same time: "It's great to see how the children and players interact with each other. These visits are something really special for the kids. Moments like these help the children enormously and give them a lot of strength." In the past, sports teams from St. Louis like the Blues (ice hockey) and the Cardinals (baseball) have also visited to put a smile on the faces of the children and teenagers.
There was another sporting highlights to round off the #Bayer04USATour: Going to the NHL game between the St. Louis Blues and the Washington Capitals. Watching from the Bayer AG box, Andrey Lunev, Niklas Lomb and Co. witnessed an exciting ice hockey match that St Louis finally won 5-4 on penalties.
Werkself TV: Day five of the #Bayer04USATour
The #Bayer04USATour 2022 ended on Friday with the return flight of the majority of the Bayer 04 delegation. After a last joint lunch it was off on a direct flight from St. Louis to Frankfurt am Main. The Werkself will now enjoy a well-deserved, two-week break from training.
The European jersey has been launched, the UEL opponents have been drawn – and anticipation for the European campaign is running high. To mark the occasion, an autograph session was held on Friday afternoon, 28 August, at the Fanwelt with current Werkself player Montrell Culbreath and official club legend Paulo Sergio.
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On Friday afternoon, it will be decided which eight of the 36 participating teams Bayer 04 will face in the group stage of the UEFA Europa League in 2026/27. At the draw in Monaco (live on UEFA.com), the Werkself will be drawn against two teams from each of the four pots, allocated according to the UEFA club coefficient. A match against an opponent from the same country is ruled out, as is facing more than two clubs from the same national association. Here’s a look at the pots and potential opponents.
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After six and a half years, Exequiel Palacios is leaving the Bundesliga and moving from Bayer 04 to the Premier League. The Argentine, who as a Werkself player won the World Cup with his national team four years ago and finished as runners-up at this summer’s tournament, will play for newly promoted English side Ipswich Town with immediate effect. The 27-year-old, whose contract in Leverkusen was due to run until 30 June 2030, joined Bayer 04 in January 2020 as a promising young talent. He steadily developed into one of the best defensive midfielders in the German top flight.
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When Exequiel Palacios moved from the Argentinian club River Plate to Bayer Leverkusen on 1 January 2020, the then 21-year-old could not have imagined just how successful the next six and a half years would be for him. Pala, as he is known, had already won the Copa Libertadores – the most prestigious competition in South American club football – with River Plate. But there were still so many more trophies to come.
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