In addition to the goalkeepers Lukas Hradecky and Patrick Pentz, Amine Adli, Sardar Azmoun, Adam Hlozek, Exequiel Palacios, Edmond Tapsoba plus Florian Wirtz returned to Leverkusen after international duty. New signing Jonas Hofmann, who joined Bayer 04 at the start of the month from league rivals Borussia Mönchengladbach, also returned to BayArena. The arrival of the international players produced happy faces and friendly greetings.
While the majority of the Werkself squad started with a 90-minute session in the gym at 10.30 CEST, Hofmann and Co. completed performance checks at the Werkstatt, the Bayer 04 rehab and training centre at the BayArena. The international players went through familiar medical tests and examinations as well as a range of diagnostic tests to check coordination, mobility and stability.
Granit Xhaka, who completed his first training sessions with the Werkself last week, also went through the performance tests.
The first training session of the week came in the afternoon with the Germany international Hofmann and the other international players also taking part after completing the performance tests. It was the first training session with the Werkself for the 31-year-old midfielder.
Head coach Xabi Alonso focused on passing in tight spaces at the start of the week. After an hour it was all over for Hofmann and Co. Following the intensive session, the players were happy to sign autographs and pose for selfies with the many fans in attendance omce again. The remaining members of he Werkself squad finished the day with a practice match.
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The other open training sessions on Tuesday (10.30 CEST), Wednesday (10.00 CEST) and Thursday (10.30 CEST) will be followed on Friday 21 July by the first friendly of the preseason. The Werkself play second division SC Paderborn 07 at the IMS Arena in Velbert. The kick-off is at 17.30 CEST and the match will be shown on Werkself TV, the Bayer 04 app and the club's YouTube channel free of charge.
Bayer 04 are riding a wave of success on the European stage: After three wins from their first three games and as the only team yet to concede a goal, the Werkself sit second in the table in the group stage of the UEFA Europa League. With another three points in their first-ever competitive match against Olympique Marseille on Thursday night, 5 November (kick-off: 21:00 CET), Bayer 04 could leap to the top of the table. Meanwhile, the French side are riding the wave of a winning streak in Ligue 1, but are yet to pick up any points in the Europa League. For one Werkself player, Thursday night will mark a reunion with his former team-mates. Today’s matchday news.
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The Europa League campaign continues: Bayer 04 host Olympique Marseille at the BayArena on matchday four of the group stage on Thursday 5 November (kick-off: 21:00 CET). Ahead of the clash against the club from the French Mediterranean coast, head coach Carles Martínez spoke about the visitors’ form and had some good news regarding the squad. Former OM player Facundo Medina spoke, amongst other things, about the factors that will be crucial against his old club.
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The Bayer 04 Round of 16 tie in the 2026/27 DFB Pokal has been scheduled. The Werkself will host Bundesliga rivals RB Leipzig on Wednesday, 2 December, at 18:00 CET. That was announced by the German Football Association (DFB).
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Video game developer Electronic Arts (EA), in collaboration with the Bundesliga, has announced the six nominees for the Bundesliga Player of the Month award for October 2026 – and Bayer 04’s Ibrahim Maza is among them. Fans of the Black and Reds can vote from now until Sunday 8 November (23:59 CET).
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