The final UEFA Nations League matches of the year have been played: The Czech Republic with Patrik Schick and Adam Hlozek faced Switzerland. While neither of the teams could climb above Spain and Portugal to the top of Group 2 in League A this game was about avoiding relegation to League B. Schick and Co. needed a win against Switzerland to overtake them – but they had to settle for a 2-1 defeat in the end. The Swiss went ahead with a double strike (29’, 30’) and the reply from Schick just before half-time was not enough in the race to stay in League A. The centre-forward played the full game and Hlozek remained on the bench.
Finland with goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky also ended their Nations League games on foreign soil: The Werkself captain, who led out the Eagle Owls as usual, was more successful with his fellow countryman in Montenegro than his Czech teammates. On matchday six in Group 3 in League B, Hradecky and Co. won 2-0 with a brace after the restart to replace Montenegro in second place.
Edmond Tapsoba with Burkina Faso and Odilon Kossounou with the Ivory Coast ended the international break with friendly fixtures. Tapsoba and Co. beat Comoros 2-1 with the Bayer 04 defender playing the full 90 minutes in his international appearance number 31. Kossounou did not play in the 3-1 win for the Ivory Coast against Guinea.
Sardar Azmoun and his fellow Iranian countrymen played Senegal in a friendly in Austria. Senegal took the lead on 55 minutes. The Bayer 04 forward came off the bench four minutes later and Azmoun levelled the scores at 1-1 five minutes after that.
The friendly between Japan and Ecuador ended goalless. Werkself defender Piero Hincapie played the whole game at the Merkur Spiel Arena in Düsseldorf.
The Netherlands U21 team with Jeremie Frimpong and Mitchel Bakker in the starting line-up only managed a 0-0 draw against Romania. Both Leverkusen players were on for the first half.
Zidan Sertdemir and the Denmark U19s lost 4-2 to England in the Euro qualifiers. The Werkself player went off at half-time with the score at 0-0. Denmark are second in Group 9 behind England.
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The German Football Association (DFB) has officially recognised Bayer 04 as a centre for the development of female talent for the 2026/27 season. The club was awarded that role on 1 January 2026, and this status has now been renewed.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen have sold young defender Andrea Natali to AZ Alkmaar on permanent terms. The 18-year-old Italian was on loan at the Dutch club last season, where he mainly played for the reserve team in the second division.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen have loaned new signing Luca Erlein to newly promoted FC Energie Cottbus for the 2026/27 season. This will give him the opportunity to play in Bundesliga 2. The club signed the 19-year-old right-back on a permanent basis last week, on a contract to 30 June 2030.
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Trophies as a youth, appearances in the pro game and his first taste of international competition: new arrival Luca Erlein, who has been signed from TSG Hoffenheim, can already look back on some remarkable achievements and moments in his fledgling career. We take a closer look at the 19-year-old right-back, who can also fill other roles across the defensive line.
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