The 23-year-old joined the Werkself in 2014 and he made 215 appearances for Bayer 04. "Julian joined us as a 17-year-old at a time when he was sought after by a lot of clubs but he opted to play for us and he has developed wonderfully since then making his international debut during his time in Leverkusen," said sporting managing director Rudi Völler. "With him, our approach of bringing through young, highly talented players early at a top level, achieving a lot with them and thereby significantly increasing their transfer value worked out too. We would have liked to have held onto him a bit longer," declared Völler, "but with the signing of Kerem Demirbay from Hoffenheim we have already found a suitable replacement."
Bayer 04 sporting director Simon Rolfes said, "Over the past few months, Julian has matured into a top player in a different position under coach Peter Bosz. Now he has decided to play somewhere else after five and a half years. We have already reacted to that in terms of personnel," said Rolfes. "And we will continue to strengthen our squad to maintain our competitiveness next season."
The season card waiting list, introduced by Bayer 04 last season, is open to Bayer 04 Club members. Read on for further information.
Show moreOlá, Brasil! The Bayer 04 flight landed safely in Rio de Janeiro early on Tuesday morning local time. From the airport it was straight to the beach in immediate proximity to the team hotel where club legend Paulo Sergio welcomed the team. The first training session is on the agenda in the afternoon. Bayer04.de will provide a close-up report on the Werkself over the next ten days with one blog per day giving insights into the events on tour. Day one of the Bayer 04 Brazil Tour (timings are in local time).
Show moreThe Werkself training camp officially began early on Tuesday morning with the landing in Rio de Janeiro. Ahead of the first session in the afternoon local time, bayer04.de profiles the talented youngsters from the youth teams who have travelled to Brazil.
Show moreThe welcome in Brazil could not have been more fitting: Paulo Sergio, with a small Bayer 04 delegation, welcomed the Werkself to Rio de Janeiro on the beach in front of the team hotel on Tuesday morning local time. Under clear blue skies, players, coaches and staff joined together for a group photo and then it was off to the rooms and breakfast. Shortly after the Werkself arrived, club legend Paulo Sergio, who will accompany the Werkself over the coming days, talked bayer04.de about these emotional moments for him.
Show morePreparations for the 2025/26 season are in full swing with the new head coach Erik ten Hag working for the start of the season in the middle of August. After the timings for the first matchdays in the forthcoming Bundesliga season were confirmed a few days ago, we now provide information on the first sale phase for match tickets. The early booker phase, exclusively for Bayer 04 Club members, brings some changes. Read on for further information.
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