After Saturday's 3-0 defeat to the Netherlands, Germany lost for a second time in succession on Tuesday night: In spite of a brave performance against World Cup winners France, the Germany team under coach Joachim Löw lost 2-1 in Paris. With a reshuffled line-up, Germany took the lead on 14 minutes when former Leverkusen midfielder Toni Kroos converted a penalty but they missed the opportunity to extend their lead. Two goals in the last 30 minutes from Antoine Griezmann (62', 80' pen.) sealed a somewhat unfortunate defeat for the German team who are now unable to be certain of remaining in Group A1 under their own steam. Werkself pro Julian Brandt came off the bench in the closing stages of the game at the Stade de France in the French capital – he replaced Matthias Ginter on 83 minutes but was unable to effect the outcome of the match. As on Saturday, team-mate Jonathan Tah remained on the subs bench for the full 90 minutes and therefore still has to wait to make his fourth full international appearance.
Aleksandar Dragovic also returns to Leverkusen on the back of a defeat. The 27-year-old Austrian was on the wrong end of 2-0 reverse in a friendly away to Denmark on Tuesday night. The Werkself number six was played from the start by the Austria coach Franco Foda and he went the full distance. Issac Kiese Thelin did not play in Sweden's 1-1 draw with Slovakia.
There was better luck for Sam Schreck: Following his debut for the Germany U20 team on Friday, the forward started against Switzerland in the U20 Elite League on Tuesday afternoon and he promptly repaid the confidence shown in him: With 16 minutes on the clock, he made it 2-0 with a long-range effort. The Germany junior side under coach Mikel Schönweitz ran out 3-2 winners in the match in Emden.
Jakub Bednarczyk and the Poland junior team lost 4-1 to the Netherlands in the U20 Elite League. The Werkself pro played on the left side of the back four for the full 90 minutes.
The day before, Lukas Hradecky and Finland celebrated a 2-0 victory over Greece in the Nations League. The Werkself number one kept another clean sheet in the new European competition: He did not concede in the fourth group match as he played his part in ensuring the Eagle Owls (on 12 points) have one foot in the play-offs with two games to play in Group C2 – ahead of Greece (6), Hungary (4) and Estonia (1).
Tin Jedvaj also completed the October international break with a win. On Monday night, Croatia beat Jordan 2-1 in a friendly. The 22-year-old World Cup runner-up, who played the full 90 minutes in the 0-0 draw with England in the Nations League on Friday (Group A4), was brought on with 64 minutes on the clock.
Paulinho was the third Werkself pro in action on Monday. In a 2-2 draw in a friendly for the Brazil U20s against Chile, the 18-year-old came off the bench in the second half for the second time in three days.
100 children from the Bayer 04 Football Academy had the chance to gain exclusive insights: As part of the summer camp, the young footballers headed inside the BayArena at midday on Tuesday, 21 July, where they were due to meet Werkself keepers Janis Blaswich and Simeon Rapsch in the press conference room. The two players took plenty of time to answer every question from the inquisitive audience – whether it was about their own careers or their first impressions of the new head coach. Finally, there was even time left to sign autographs for the young fans.
Show more
Alejo Sarco has left Bayer 04 Leverkusen to join Sporting Gijón in Spain’s second division. Bayer 04 have secured a buy-back clause for the 20-year-old Argentine striker, who spent the second half of last season on loan at Borussia Mönchengladbach.
Show more
Bayer 04 Leverkusen have signed 16-year-old midfield prospect Gabriel Minutillo on a long-term contract. The Germany youth international will play for the U19s this season.
Show more
Bayer 04 preparations for the 2026/27 season are in full swing, with the first friendly now under their belts. Although there are still around seven weeks to go until the first Bundesliga home game in early September, there is already huge anticipation for the start of competitive action for head coach Carles Martínez’s team at the BayArena. For the Bundesliga home matches of the new season, here is the latest information regarding the first phase of single-match ticket sales. The tried-and-tested early-bird phase remains in place. From 23 to 31 July, tickets for matches will go on sale on weekdays; the early-bird phase ends on 5 August at the latest – provided tickets are still available by then.
Show more
