The World Cup qualifiers see two Werkself players on opposite sides: On Tuesday, 16 November (kick-off: 20.45 CET), Lukas Hradecky with Finland at home in Helsinki face Moussa Diaby and France. Les Bleus are currently unbeaten at the top of Group D after six matches with the Eagle Owls currently in third place.
Werkself youngster Florian Wirtz is in the Germany squad for the fourth time this year. The 18-year-old has been called up by Germany coach Hansi Flick for the international is going to Liechtenstein (11 November) plus Armenia (14 November). Wirtz has played four full internationals to date.
Edmond Tapsoba has already returned to action for his club following his torn ankle ligaments and the 22-year-old is now set to make his comeback on the international stage. With the as yet unbeaten Burkina Faso, the central defender has two World Cup qualifiers over the next two weeks. That includes a match against the Group A leaders Algeria.
For the Argentinian Werkself duo of Exequiel Palacios and Lucas Alario there is a South American clasico on the cards: The Albiceleste play Brazil on Tuesday, 16 November. Both teams are unbeaten after eleven games in the World Cup qualifiers.
The forthcoming meeting of the two rivals could be more eagerly awaited than ever: Following the recent triumph for Lionel Messi and Co. in the final of the Copa América (1-0), the World Cup qualifier in the São Paulo at the start of September was abandoned due to a breach of coronavirus travel regulations.
Florian Wirtz (World Cup qualifiers)
11.11, 20.45 CET, Germany vs Liechtenstein, Wolfsburg
14.11, 18.00 CET, Armenia vs Germany, Yerevan
Lukas Hradecky (World Cup qualifiers)
13.11, 15.00 CET, Bosnia-Herzegovina vs Finland, Zenica
16.11, 20.45 CET, Finland vs France, Helsinki
Moussa Diaby (World Cup qualifiers)
13.11, 20.45 CET, France vs Kazakhstan, Paris
16.11, 20.45 CET, Finland vs France, Helsinki
Patrik Schick (Friendly and World Cup qualifier)
11.11, 18.30 CET, Czech Republic vs Kuwait, Olomouc
16.11, 20.45 CET, Czech Republic vs Estonia, Prague
Andrey Lunev (World Cup qualifiers)
11.11, 18.00 CET, Russia vs Cyprus, St. Petersburg
14.11, 15.00 CET, Croatia vs Russia, Split
Mitchel Bakker and Jeremie Frimpong (U21 Euro qualifiers)
12.11, 18.45 CET, Netherlands U21 vs Bulgaria U21, Almere
15.11, 14.00 CET, Gibraltar U21 vs Netherlands U21, Gibraltar
Amine Adli (U21 Euro qualifiers)
11.11, 20.45 CET, France U21 vs Armenia U21, Grenoble
16.11, 18.30 CET, Macedonia U21 vs France U21, Skopje
Exequiel Palacios and Lucas Alario (World Cup qualifiers)
13.11, 00.00 CET, Uruguay vs Argentina, Montevideo
17.11, 00.30 CET, Argentina vs Brazil, San Juan
Charles Aránguiz (World Cup qualifiers)
12.11, 00.00 CET, Paraguay vs Chile, Asunción
17.11, 01.15 CET, Chile vs Ecuador, Santiago de Chile
Piero Hincapie (World Cup qualifiers)
11.11., 22.00 CET, Ecuador vs Venezuela, Quito
17.11., 01.15 CET, Chile vs Ecuador, Santiago de Chile
Edmond Tapsoba (World Cup qualifiers)
12.11, 14.00 CET, Burkina Faso vs Niger, Marrakesh
16.11, 17.00 CET, Algeria vs Burkina Faso, Blida
Odilon Kossounou (World Cup qualifiers)
13.11, 20.00 CET, Ivory Coast vs Mozambique, Cotonou
16.11, 20.00 CET, Cameroon vs Ivory Coast, Yaoundé
It was another incredibly close call in the end: The second showdown in the 2026/27 VBL Club Championship saw the #B04eSports team once again narrowly miss out on a place in the top 16 of the preliminary round – and with it, a spot in the in-person knockout stage. It was a bitter blow: Marc and Sean Landwehr again fell just short, despite being level on points with their rivals. As was the case last month, their weaker record across the twelve individual matches in the six preliminary round fixtures proved decisive.
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“They stuck with us over the past few weeks when things weren’t going so well,” said captain Edmond Tapsoba, thanking the fans for their support after the 2–1 win in Cologne and dedicating the derby victory to them. Throughout the 90 minutes, the Werkself had looked unfazed and in command, inflicting the first home defeat of the season on FC Köln. It was the sixth consecutive win against the Cologne team for Bayer 04 – head coach Carles Martínez, on the other hand, was facing the team from the neighbouring city for the first time and “now really knows what this derby win means”. The Werkself derby review.
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Following the 2–1 derby victory away at FC Köln on Bundesliga matchday 9, Edmond Tapsoba, Malik Tillman and Aleix Garcia spoke to Werkself TV...
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Werkself TV shows the highlights of Bayer 04's 2-1 derby win at 1. FC Köln Matchday 9 of the 2026/27 Bundesliga season...
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There were celebrations among those in black and red at the RheinEnergieSTADION. On Matchday 9 of the 2026/27 Bundesliga season, the Werkself beat 1. FC Köln 2-0 and registered their sixth successive win in the derby. Aleix Garcia put Bayer 04 in front after just seven minutes with a direct free kick. Leverkusen played with discipline and energy after that and didn't allow some fierce challenges to unsettle them. Patrik Schick made it 2-0 in the 86th minute, and Said El Mala's goal in stoppage time for Köln proved nothing more than consolation. Jonas Hofmann crowned the derby win with his 100th appearance for the club.
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