Germany played World Cup winners France in their first outing in the newly created European competition (Group A). In the first match since the early exit in Russia, Joachim Löw's team were on top for much of the game but failed to convert their chances and the encounter ended in a 0-0 draw –Julian Brandt, Kai Havertz and Jonathan Tah did not get on so Havertz has to wait for his debut on the international stage. That could happen on Sunday (9 September, 20.45 CET) when Germany play Peru in a friendly in Sinsheim.
Aleksandar Dragovic (Austria), Issac Kiese Thelin (Sweden), Tin Jedvaj (Croatia) were in action with their national teams in friendlies on Thursday night: Austria beat Sweden 2-0 in Vienna. Kiese Thelin played in the first half for the visitors and Dragovic came off the bench for Austria for the second half. At the same time, World Cup runners-up drew 1-1 with Portugal – Jedvaj came on after 35 minutes.
Jakub Bednarczyk started for the Poland U20s (substituted on 85 minutes) in a 3-0 defeat against Italy in an eight team tournament in Lodz. New signing Paulinho played for the Brazil U20 team on Wednesday in 1-0 victory away to Mexico.
While their team-mates are away from Leverkusen on international duty, the rest of the Werkself in Leverkusen continue with their training regime. After the closed session on Wednesday, Herrlich's squad trained again yesterday morning. Good news: Wendell has recovered from the knock he picked up against Wolfsburg, which sidelined him for the past few days – the Brazilian full-back completed an individual 45-minute session on the neighbouring pitch.
The Golden Boy Top 100 traditionally lists Europe’s most promising young players. In the latest update, published to mark the start of the new season, four current Werkself players – alongside loanee Francis Onyeka – feature on the list. This means Bayer 04 have the most players in contention of any Bundesliga club.
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Goalkeeper Rafaela Borggräfe will continue to play for Bayer 04 Leverkusen next season. The loan of the Germany U23 international, who joined from Liverpool in the winter, has been extended by a further year.
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The Bayer 04 delegation, led by Fernando Carro, CEO, concluded their multi-day trip to Brazil with a visit to the community-based organisation Bola Pra Frente in Rio de Janeiro – founded by former Werkself player Jorginho. During the visit, Bayer 04 committed to extending support for the Bola Pra Frente project for a further five years. In addition, Jorginho, a member of the Brazil 1994 World Cup-winning squad, was named Bayer 04’s second official club legend. With the visit to São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, the club has strengthened the relationships built up over the years in one of Bayer 04’s most important international markets.
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Ten years after retiring as a player, Kristina Sundov is returning to the Bayer 04 Women’s team as assistant coach. The 39-year-old former Croatia international takes over from Remzi Kahraman, who has taken up a new challenge abroad. She has been given a contract to 30 June 2028.
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The training pitches at the BayArena are already buzzing with activity again, even before training officially begins next week. On Monday morning, a small group from the Werkself first-team squad completed a session lasting around an hour. Both new and familiar faces were present.
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