
… his current daily training routine: I don't see a problem with the training sessions changed by hygiene measures. For us, it's primarily and, above all, for the outfield players about keeping fit and staying on top of your form. You can practice shooting in small groups as well. Work on tactics is mainly missing but I get on with the players in front of me so well that everybody will soon get back into the swing of things.
… goalkeeper Lennart Grill signed from FC Kaiserslautern: I'm looking forward to working with him. I've already seen quite a lot of him and he's a talented keeper. Of course, young and new players always want to be on the pitch. But it's exactly the same with me although I'm a bit older. At the end of the day, new competition always gives me an additional boost. And we goalkeepers work together in training as a group – so everybody benefits from it.
… the suspension of play due to the coronavirus pandemic: If I put the summer breaks to one side, then I've never had such a long time without playing. The whole thing is new to me and to us all. I'll be interested to see how the teams are after this time and I hope that we can get quickly back to the good form we had before the break.
…the postponement of his first European Championship with Finland by one year to 2021: I hope I can stay free of injury until then. Otherwise, I am relaxed about it. And, above all, I'd be happy to see spectators back in the grounds.

With their wonderful goals, Martin Terrier and Florian Wirtz are up for the Bundesliga Goal of the Year 2025. Voting for fans will run exclusively via the official Bundesliga app until Sunday, 4 January.
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Four Bayer 04 players are in action at the 35th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations being played in Morocco from 21 December to 18 January 2026: Eliesse Ben Seghir for the hosts, Edmond Tapsoba with Burkina Faso, Ibrahim Maza for Algeria and Christian Kofane with Cameroon. Updates on the AFCON matches involving Werkself players...
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The ‘year after’ the most successful year in the club's history brought many changes at Bayer 04. In an exclusive double interview with bayer04.de shortly before the Christmas break, Fernando Carro and Simon Rolfes spoke about building a new team capable of winning trophies, the work of coach Kasper Hjulmand, the young new signings who have quickly developed into key players, and their personal plans for the Christmas holidays. Their outlook for the coming year also shows that the potential is far from exhausted and ambitions remain high.
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Last-minute ecstasy, huge disappointment and a historic performance on the European stage - 2025 was a real emotional roller coaster, especially for the U19s. A rousing run in the knockout phase secured the team a place in the final of the German championships, where they lost by the narrowest of margins. Despite the departure of several key players, the young Werkself team quickly regained their usual strength and qualified for the knockout rounds in the UEFA Youth League for the first time at the end of the year. In 2025, youngsters Jeremiah Mensah and Montrell Culbreath made their debuts in the Bundesliga, the DFB Pokal and the UEFA Champions League. The other youth teams also contributed great performances and a number of trophies to the collective Black and Red success, while the successful Bayer 04 Future Kids project broke new ground. Read on for the 2025 review of the youth teams.
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A memorable 12 months: 2025 was a year marked by success, intense competition and groundbreaking innovations for the #B04eSports team. After ending the 2024/25 season as runners-up, the Leverkusen-based console pros got down to business in a new, completely restructured season model, in which showdowns rather than divisions were the decisive factor on the road to the final round of the German Club Championship. Bayer 04 quickly earned a place in the history books of the most prestigious competition in German eSports and secured some valuable advantages for the coming year. Bayer04.de takes a look back at 12 months full of passion and the determination to take the next step.
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