After yesterday's double shift to start the week, Heiko Herrlich led another training session with his players on Tuesday morning. Once again, the Werkself worked in sunshine under blue skies. "Everyone's up for it – it's clear to see everybody is fully motivated. Hats off to the lads for the way they're working," said head coach Heiko Herrlich in praise of his players. And not just that: Charles Aranguiz came onto the training ground 50 minutes later to complete a one-to-one session with the ball under fitness coach Daniel Jouvin. The Chilean has to take it easy due to persistent knee problems.
Finally, he has arrived: Two days after his eighteenth birthday on Sunday, new signing Paulinho is now in Leverkusen. After a 14-hour flight, the TAP Airline landed at Frankfurt Airport at 10.41 CET with Paulinho and five other family members on board. He was met by a Bayer 04 delegation. From there, the ICE train left at 11.55 for Cologne and then there was the short journey to the BayArena. At the home of the Werkself, he then met his fellow countryman Wendell and other future team-mates at 13.30. It remains to be seen when Paulinho will start training with the Werkself. "We don't want to overwork him and we'll have to see how he deals with jet lag. We will introduce him gradually and avoid going from nought to sixty with him," announced Herrlich and he ruled him out for tomorrow's friendly.
Shortly after Paulinho arrived, the Werkself and their coaches faced a flurry of camera flashes – the preliminary team photo was shot at the BayArena. At the command of the photographer, it was time for "heads up and smile." For the new signing from Brazil plus Lukas Hradecky, Mitchell Weiser, Thorsten Kirschbaum, and video analyst Marcel Daum it was the first team photo in Black and Red. And the currently injured Panagiotis Retsos also took part in the photo session – as did the U19 players Sam Schreck, Jakub Bednarczyk, Chinedu Ekene and Thomas Kucz. Absentees from the photo were World Cup player Julian Brandt and World Cup runner-up Tin Jedvaj plus the injured Joel Pohjanpalo. They are due to be on the final team photo planned for the end of August.
After the team photo was taken, there were more cameras waiting for Sven Bender, Leon Bailey and Co.: After Fortuna Düsseldorf and FC Schalke , Bayer 04 are the third Bundesliga club visited by the German Football League (DFL) this season for the so-called media day. In addition to video portraits, photoshoots and numerous shots for Sky, Eurosport and international TV broadcasters, the Werkself players were divided into groups of six (plus a group of coaches) for a range of challenges going on to early in the evening at the #BLMediaDay. The Werkself looked good in the team photo and other individual shots and events.
Heiko Herrlich's team have the first friendly of the pre-season on Wednesday: The opponents from the Rhineland Palatinate are SV Roßbach/Verscheid. The away game in Wiedbachtal is being staged for the 50th anniversary of the Rhineland Cup winners of 2012at the 'In der Au' sports ground in Roßbach/Wied. The match kicks off at 18.00 CET (live on Facebook). The Werkself will not only be playing in the new home kit for the first time but will also make their first journey on the new team bus.
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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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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To mark Exequiel Palacios’s departure, we’ve put together a compilation of the midfielder’s finest and most important goals from his six-and-a-half years at the club.
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