The European champions meet the winners of the Copa América in the Finalissima. The new competition was agreed on 15 December 2020 after UEFA and CONMEBOL signed an updated agreement in principle. Italy qualified for the match thanks to the 3-2 win on penalties against England in last year's European Championships final; the Argentina team including Werkself midfielder Palacios won the South American title again for the first time in 28 years – with a 1-0 win against Brazil in the final.
Exequiel Palacios has won 18 full international caps to date. The match at Wembley Stadium kicks off tonight at 20.45 CEST.
The other Bayer 04 players will be on the pitch on Friday 3 June. Mitchel Bakker is first up with the Netherlands U21s in a European championship qualifier away to Moldova at 18.45 CEST. Bakker & Co. are currently second in Group 5 and they are only two points behind the leaders Switzerland having played one game less.
Then Moussa Diaby and France take on Denmark in the UEFA Nations League in Group 1A. The kick-off at the Stade de France in Paris is at 20.45 CEST.
Edmond Tapsoba and Odilon Kossounou play their first matches in the Africa Cup of Nations from 21.00 CEST. The Werkself number 12 with Burkina Faso face Cape Verde in Marrakesh. Kossounou and the Ivory Coast play at the same time at home to Zambia in Yamoussoukro.
The #InternationalWerkself day is rounded off by Piero Hincapie with Ecuador. La Tri play the first of three friendlies in New Jersey (USA). Nigeria are the opponents in the first match. That game starts at 02.30 CEST.
Jonathan Tah is with Germany on Saturday 4 June for the game against hosts Italy in Bologna in Group 3A of the UEFA Nation's League. RTL will broadcast the match live on terrestrial TV as well as via a live stream from 20.15 CEST. The match kicks off at 20.45 CEST.
Before that, the Werkself captain Lukas Hradecky with Finland are also in action in the Nations League. The opponents in their first match in Group 3B are Bosnia-Herzegovina. The kick-off at the Olympic Stadium in Helsinki is at 18.00 CEST.
INTERNATIONAL FXTURES:
Lukas Hradecky – Finland
4 June, 18.00 CEST: Finland vs Bosnia & Herzegovina (UEFA Nations League)
7 June, 18.00 CEST: Finland vs Montenegro (UEFA Nations League)
11 June, 20.45 CEST: Romania vs Finland (UEFA Nations League)
14 June, 20.45 CEST: Bosnia & Herzegovina vs Finland (UEFA Nations League)
Jonathan Tah – Germany
4 June, 20:45 CEST: Italy vs Germany (UEFA Nations League)
7 June, 20:45 CEST: Germany vs England (UEFA Nations League)
11 June, 20.45 CEST: Hungary vs Germany (UEFA Nations League)
14 June, 20.45 CEST: Germany vs Italy (UEFA Nations League)
Moussa Diaby – France
3 June, 20.45 CEST: France vs Denmark (UEFA Nations League)
6 June, 20.45 CEST: Croatia vs France (UEFA Nations League)
10 June, 20.45 CEST: Austria vs France (UEFA Nations League)
13 June, 20.45 CEST: France vs Croatia (UEFA Nations League)
Exequiel Palacios – Argentina
1 June, 20.45 CEST: Italy vs Argentina (Finalissima)
Piero Hincapie – Ecuador
3 June, 02.30 CEST: Ecuador vs Nigeria (Friendly)
6 June, 01.30 CEST: Mexico vs Ecuador (Friendly)
12 June, 23.30 CEST: Ecuador vs Cape Verde (Friendly)
Edmond Tapsoba – Burkina Faso
3. June, 21.00 CEST: Burkina Faso vs Cape Verde (AFCON qualifier)
7. June, 15.00 CEST: Eswatini vs Burkina Faso (AFCON qualifier)
Odilon Kossounou – Ivory Coast
3 June, 21.00 CEST: Ivory Coast vs Zambia (AFCON qualifier)
9 June, 21.00 CEST: Lesotho vs Ivory Coast (AFCON qualifier)
Mitchel Bakker – Netherlands U21
3 June, 18.45 CEST: Moldova U21 vs Netherlands U21 (Euro qualifier)
7 June, 20.00 CEST: Netherlands U21 vs Gibraltar U21 (Euro qualifier)
11 June, 18.00 CEST: Wales U21 vs Netherlands U 21 (Euro qualifier)
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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