Leno and Brandt contributed to Germany winning the Confed Cup in Russia last summer. And with impressive performances in the Bundesliga and DFB Cup they could again be considered by Joachim Löw. The same applies to U21 international captain Tah, who – exactly like Leno – received a vote of confidence from the Germany coach at the European Championships in France two years ago. "I'm very happy the three are in the provisional World Cup squad. Bernd, Jonathan and Julian have earned that after a great season at Bayer 04 where they were top performers and now they will do all they can to make it to Russia," said Bayer 04 sporting director Rudi Völler.
Bernd Leno was first included in the Germany squad in October 2015 and has since earned six caps. Last season, the 26-year-old Werkself number one only missed one competitive match (in the league against Borussia Dortmund due to a knee injury) – in the remaining 38 games he was in goal for the Herrlich team. Julian Brandt is also undoubtedly one of the key players at Bayer 04 and he played in every competitive match for the Black and Reds this season. The 22-year-old midfielder scored 12 goals (including nine in the league) and also provided seven assists. He made his full international debut at the end of May 2016 and has since played 13 games for Germany scoring one goal. U21 captain Jonathan Tah (three internationals) made his debut for Joachim Löw two years ago with the 22-year-old central defender primarily featuring for the Germany junior team. This season he has played 33 games for the Werkself (28 in the league, five in the DFB Cup) and he is one of the best ball winners in the league (with over 70 per cent of challenges won).
In addition to Leno, Brandt and Tah, Werkself pro Tin Jedvaj can dream of playing in the World Cup in Russia: The 22-year-old defender has been called up to the provisional Croatia squad by national coach Zlatko Dalić.
The Germany squad with 27 players set off for a training camp in South Tyrol next week. After a friendly against Austria (2 June, 18.00 CET), Joachim Löw will have two days to inform FIFA of his 23-man squad for the World Cup finals. The final squad will have one last friendly ahead of the tournament on 8 June when Germany meet Saudi Arabia at the BayArena (19.30 CET).
The first World Cup game for Germany (Group F) on 17 June (17.00 CET) is against Mexico with the road to the Round of 16 bringing the other group matches against Sweden (23 June, 20.00 CET) and South Korea (27 June, 16.00 CET).
Bayer 04 Leverkusen have agreed a loan deal with Bundesliga club Borussia Mönchengladbach for Argentinian striker Alejo Sarco. The 20-year-old joins Mönchengladbach with immediate effect for the rest of the season.
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The Werkself are away to Greek double winners Olympiacos on matchday 7 in the league phase of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League campaign. Tonight, 20 January (kick-off: 22:00 local time/21:00 CET), Bayer 04 will not only face a familiar face in Panagiotis Retsos, but also an experienced and successful team in their Greek top-flight opponents. The Olympiacos midfield and forward line in particular are peppered with seasoned veterans from top European clubs - but even they will first have to find solutions against the Werkself defence that has recently performed with aplomb in the UCL. The matchday news.
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The Werkself are away to Greek double winners Olympiacos on matchday 7 of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League league phase. Ahead of the clash on Tuesday, 20 January (kick-off: 21:00 CET), head coach Kasper Hjulmand spoke about anticipation for the game. Werkself player Ibrahim Maza also gave an insight into dealing with the recent setbacks.
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After their first win on matchday 6 in the UCL league phase, Olympiacos are still in with a good chance of reaching the play-offs in the UEFA Champions League. The 2024 UEFA Conference League winners will be looking to go one better in their home match against Bayer 04 this Tuesday, 20 January (kick-off: 21:00 CET), but their stop scorer is unavailable. The lowdown on our next opponents.
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Panagiotis, known as Panos, Retsos wore the Bayer 04 jersey for three years. Including his loan spells, he was under contract with the Werkself for a total of four and a half years. "It's a very special club for me," said the 27-year-old, who returned to his boyhood club Olympiacos in 2022, in an interview with bayer04.de. The former Leverkusen man is now captain and a first choice for the Werkself's next opponents in the UEFA Champions League. Ahead of the clash on Tuesday night, 20 January (kick-off: 21:00 CET), Retsos talks about his fond memories of his time in Leverkusen and the imminent reunion with some of his former team-mates. He also talks about who brought him to Leverkusen and why he likes getting older.
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