
Lukas Hradecky and the Finns were on the wrong end of a 3-1 scoreline in the Nations League game against Wales. This match decided promotion to League A – Wales won the race with 16 points ahead of Finland on 12 points who were down to ten men on 12 minutes. Hradecky played the full 90 minutes.
In contrast, the Austrians led by Julian Baumgartlinger as captain for the duration of the match had reason to celebrate. A late goal in added time scored by Adrian Grbic secured a 1-1 draw against Norway – the one point was enough to win the group. Austria now go up to League A in the Nations League. Aleksandar Dragovic had to cross his fingers for the national team in Leverkusen. The 29-year-old was suspended for the match and he returned to Germany from the Austria squad at the weekend.

Panagiotis, known as Panos, Retsos wore the Bayer 04 jersey for three years. Including his loan spells, he was under contract with the Werkself for a total of four and a half years. "It's a very special club for me," said the 27-year-old, who returned to his boyhood club Olympiacos in 2022, in an interview with bayer04.de. The former Leverkusen man is now captain and a first choice for the Werkself's next opponents in the UEFA Champions League. Ahead of the clash on Tuesday night, 20 January (kick-off: 21:00 CET), Retsos talks about his fond memories of his time in Leverkusen and the imminent reunion with some of his former team-mates. He also talks about who brought him to Leverkusen and why he likes getting older.
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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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Bayer 04 Leverkusen will have to manage without goalkeeper Mark Flekken and forward Nathan Tella for the time being.
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After a week in the Algarve, the Bayer 04 Women returned home on Saturday afternoon. The Werkself had six training sessions, two friendlies and a lot of time together as a team. Roberto Pätzold's team will be back in action in the Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga next Friday for the start of matchday 15.
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"We didn’t make the right decision at the right moments," said captain Robert Andrich after the 1-0 defeat away to TSG Hoffenheim, where Bayer 04 endeavoured to control the game but failed to score. The Werkself also had two enforced substitutions due to injuries. Nevertheless, the coach, captain and debutant Janis Blaswich are positive about the coming weeks. The Werkself review.
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