
The 20-year-old is in the 'Up-and-coming group' behind Christian Pulisic (Dortmund), Thomas Müller (Bayern), Vincenzo Grifo (Freiburg) and Serge Gnabry (Bremen). The two Bayern wingers Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery plus Dortmund's Ousmane Dembelé are the only players named in the 'International class'.
The Kicker assessment of Julian Brandt reads: "Brandt, with his seven assists at the the Rio Olympics, played a key role in securing the silver medal for Germany. The quick technician has now found his feet in the league. Ever stronger since matchday ten with his goals and assists." Karim Bellarabi, who took third spot in the 'International' class in the summer of 2016, has not been considered this time round as he missed the whole of the first half of the season due to injury.
In the 'Strikers' category Chicharito was named amongst 'The prospects'. Kevin Volland is missing from the rankings due to a broken hand and muscle injury that has severely limited his number of appearances.


In mid-August, the Werkself will set off on a four-day trip to England to play their final two friendly matches of the 2026/27 pre-season against Premier League clubs Nottingham Forest and Newcastle United. The match in Nottingham against the Tricky Trees is on Wednesday 12 August at 20:45 CEST (19:45 BST) at the City Ground. The game against the Magpies in Newcastle is on Saturday 15 August at 16:00 CEST (15:00 BST) at the atmospheric St James’ Park. Details on ticket sales for both matches.
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Black and Red talent development at the highest level – even off the pitch: Apprentices Jule Suermann, Leandra Bellia and Julia Niederheide have successfully completed their two- or three-year apprenticeships at the club. Bayer 04 honoured the trio at the BayArena on Tuesday.
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Rieden reloaded: Just like last year, the Bayer 04 Women’s team are spending their summer training camp in this idyllic corner of Bavaria. From this Sunday, coach Roberto Pätzold’s team will be based in Rieden in the Upper Palatinate for a week.
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Following the summer break, most of the players are back in Leverkusen. While two Bayer 04 first-team players are still in action at the World Cup, the players present officially kicked off the new season with fitness assessments. At the Werkstatt, the Bayer 04 rehabilitation and training centre, Robert Andrich, Edmond Tapsoba and the rest of the squad worked up quite a sweat in the sweltering summer heat. New signings Afonso Moreira and Kennet Eichhorn also successfully completed the day’s sessions alongside their new team-mates.
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The Werkself return tomorrow, Tuesday 14 July (from 11:00 CEST at the BayArena; live stream on bayer04.de, the Bayer 04 app and YouTube), with new head coach Carles Martínez leading his first training session as part of the Bayer 04 set-up. His coaching team comprises a mix of new and long-standing colleagues.
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