The five returned to the BayArena on Sunday morning to complete the performance tests in the Werkstatt that the rest of the squad put behind them on Thursday. "It was good! Everything went perfectly for me," said Kai Havertz. "You keep fit on holiday to make sure you pass the tests." But in the first two weeks after the international fixtures it was a question of putting his feet up – "switching off and doing nothing is also important. But then I started my individual training programme that they gave us to use at home," explained the 20-year-old.
The returnees first completed an individual warm-up routine in the training session before moving on to passing and shooting drills and finally joining the rest of the squad for a practice match. Havertz had a positive impression of the three new signings Kerem Demirbay, Moussa Diaby and Daley Sinkgraven: "We've done very well strengthening the squad and we'll definitely have fun with these players."
At the start of the week, Peter Bosz had 20 pros plus the two U19 players Adrian Stanilewicz and Marcel Lotka at his disposal. Jonathan Tah, Charles Aránguiz and Leon Bailey will join the rest of the squad at the training camp in Zell am See-Kaprun (15 to 21 July). Julian Baumgartlinger is still sidelined. The Austrian injured an ankle in the international break and is currently working on a one-to-one basis in rehab with a physiotherapist in Munich. Baumgartlinger is expected to return to Leverkusen on Wednesday.
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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