Wirtz scored 11 goals and provided 11 assists in his 32 Bundesliga appearances this season to take the award organised by the DFL and EA Sports, adding to his monthly trophies from October, December and February. The other winners of the Player of the Month titles were VfB Stuttgart duo Serhou Guirassy (September and March) and Deniz Undav (November and January), as well as Bayer 04 teammates Victor Boniface (August) and Alejandro Grimaldo (April).
Unsurprisingly, the Player of the Season also earned a place in the Bundesliga’s Team of the Season for 2023/24. He also won Germany’s 2023 Goal of the Year vote by Sportschau for his individual effort against Freiburg last autumn.
The DFL has named an official Player of the Season since 2019/20, with Wirtz’s accolade the first for a Werkself player.
Wirtz will receive his trophy alongside Rookie of the Season winner Boniface at the Coming Home celebration on Sunday, 26 May.
Exciting experiences and exclusive insights into the Werkself and the BayArena awaited the young footballers from the BA04 Football Academy Guangzhou in China during their visit to the Rhineland this week. As well as taking part in a joint training session with the Bayer 04 Football Academy, the youngsters marvelled at the Bundesliga club’s stadium during a guided tour. The highlight of the visit was a private press conference with former Bayer 04 striker Stefan Kießling, during which he shared tips from his own career with the young players. On Saturday afternoon, 10 October, the group will round off their visit by supporting the Werkself in the away match in Mainz.
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Fun, games and promising talent: At the fourth Bayer 04 Junior Girls’ Talent Day at the Kurtekotten training centre, 90 football-mad girls had the chance to put themselves forward for the Werkself youth teams. During a 90-minute training session, children born between 2011 and 2019 had the chance to demonstrate their skills.
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Despite the international break, numerous Werkself fans turned up at the BayArena on Saturday 3 October. The occasion: Bayer 04, together with Bayer Vital and main sponsor BarmeniaGothaer, organised a Health Day. In the stadium’s Premium Lounge, guests listened to fascinating talks on the subject of cancer, featuring, amongst others, Bayer 04 record appearance holder Rüdiger Vollborn and former Werkself player Hans Sarpei. Afterwards, young and old alike enjoyed interactive stations such as a grip strength test and eye pupil test.
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In issue #56 of Werkself Magazine, Afonso Moreira offers some interesting insights into his home country, Portugal, as part of the ‘Sag mal’ (Tell me) feature. Among other things, the 21-year-old talks about his favourite places in the country on the Iberian Peninsula, the local cuisine and music, as well as heroes and historical figures beyond the world of football. ‘Sag mal’ with Afonso Moreira!
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