After the runaway 5-1 victory over Mainz 05 in the Bundesliga on Friday night, Peter Bosz decided to give his players the weekend off. And that meant the Werkself only returned to work on Monday morning – that involved analysis of the Mainz match and a 90-minute session on the training ground. In wet and blustery conditions, the Black and Reds worked on passing, shooting and positional play. That was followed in the afternoon by the first preparations for the clash with team currently lying second in the top-flight in Russia.
Birthday boy Jonathan Tah was joined on the training ground by Julian Baumgartlinger. The 31-year-old Austrian suffered a broken nose in a challenge late-on at Mainz and he underwent an operation the next day. In spite of bruising under his left eye,the midfielder completed the full session just two days later. "In the positional play we put Baumi a bit more out on the flanks to keep him out of challenges," explained Bosz. A protective mask is due to be delivered to Leverkusen this afternoon and the Werkself number 15 is set to wear it for the next few games. It remains to be seen if Baumgartlinger will be in the line-up in Krasnodar. "We have to be prepared for a physical game in Krasnodar with lots of challenges. But I think he'll be able to travel."
Unlike the skipper Lars Bender, who again missed training due a thigh injury and he may well be ruled out for the first leg in the southern Russian city. Joel Pohjanpalo (rehab after ankle in jury) and Panagiotis Retsos are also sidelined. The latter was wearing his boots again on Monday afternoon on the road to recovery following a thigh injury – the 20-year-old completed a session on the training ground with the ball under medical supervision.
The working week for the Werkself players and coaches started with a photo session for the new team photo.Head coach Peter Bosz, his assistant Hendrie Krüzen and fitness coach Terry Peters were joined by youth player Jan Boller. The 18-year-old defender was in the Bayer 04 first team squad for the first time for the DFB Cup tie at Heidenheim.
The German Football Association (DFB) has officially recognised Bayer 04 as a centre for the development of female talent for the 2026/27 season. The club was awarded that role on 1 January 2026, and this status has now been renewed.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen have sold young defender Andrea Natali to AZ Alkmaar on permanent terms. The 18-year-old Italian was on loan at the Dutch club last season, where he mainly played for the reserve team in the second division.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen have loaned new signing Luca Erlein to newly promoted FC Energie Cottbus for the 2026/27 season. This will give him the opportunity to play in Bundesliga 2. The club signed the 19-year-old right-back on a permanent basis last week, on a contract to 30 June 2030.
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Werkself TV shows the highlights of the 3-1 victory in the friendly match at Kickers Offenbach...
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It’s always nice having your best friends round for a birthday! Bayer 04 made a guest appearance at Stadion am Bieberer Berg as part of Offenbacher Kickers’ 125th anniversary celebrations, and nearly 1,500 Werkself supporters accepted the invitation to this historic venue, joining the Offenbach crowd in celebrating the more than 45-year friendship between the clubs. On the pitch, the Werkself secured a 3–1 victory in the friendly against the fourth-tier Regionalliga side. The Leverkusen goals were scored by Christian Kofane (38’), Jonas Hofmann (48’) and Afonso Moreira (81’). Keanu Staude had put the hosts ahead in the first half (11’).
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