
Nadiem Amiri knows the Rhine from growing up – even if it was 200 kilometres south of Leverkusen: The 1.78 metre right-footer, with Afghani roots, was born in Ludwigshafen am Rhein on 27 October 1996. After playing in youth teams for Ludwigshafen SC, FC Kaiserslautern and SV Waldhof Mannheim, Amiri joined the Hoffenheim U17s in the summer of 2012. In 2014 he was in the Hoffenheim team that won the German U19 Championships and he made his first appearance for the senior squad shortly after that: On 7 February 2015 he made his debut in Germany's top flight under coach Markus Gisdol at the age of 18. And he was an immediate hit. Also in the starting eleven for TSG at the time: Kevin Volland who signed for Bayer 04 a year later.
Thanks to his technique, pace, work rate and commitment, Amiri, who appeared rather shy and reserved off the pitch, shone with the pros making a total of 115 appearances – in the Bundesliga, the DFB Cup and Europa League through to the Champions League. The new Werkself number 11 scored 13 goals and provided 13 assists in total.
Since making his debut for the Germany youth team in November 2013, Amiri has regularly been invited to play for the Germany junior teams. Most recently that was at the U 21 European Championships in Italy and San Marino back in June – and that despite the 22-year-old not only missed the whole first half of last season due to a stress fracture in his left metatarsal but also with the campaign ending early for him due to a torn ligament in his left ankle.
The U 21 European Champion of 2017 did demonstrate his value in this year's competition: Amiri played in all five of Germany's games. The number 18 played a significant part in winning the silver medal with three goals and two assists that impressively repaid the confidence shown in him by coach Stefan Kuntz.

Werkself-TV shows the highlights of the Bayer 04 women's 4-0 win at SGS Essen on the 24th matchday of the Google Pixel Frauen-Bundesliga 2025/26.
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Bayer 04 put in a brilliant performance to beat RB Leipzig 4-1 on Bundesliga matchday 32 and are now fourth in a Champions League spot. The Black and Reds took control of the game right from the start and, with 75 per cent possession at one stage, took a 2-0 lead into the break through Patrik Schick (25’) and Nathan Tella (45+1’). The visitors initially tried to do more after the break, but the Werkself remained determined and Schick scored his second goal to increase the lead to 3-0 (76'). The Red Bulls pulled a goal back through Christoph Baumgartner (80'), but the disciplined Leverkusen side were not rattled - and certainly not Schick: The Czechia international crowned a brilliant display with his third goal shortly before the final whistle to make the final score 4-1.
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In the previous game against RB Leipzig in December last year, the Werkself turned came from behind to win 3-1 and further improved Leverkusen's already strong record against the Red Bulls. Montrell Culbreath stood out with his first goal on his debut for the Black and Reds. While the 18-year-old would certainly like to score a second goal against Leipzig on Saturday night, the attack-minded visitors come to the BayArena in confident mood after five Bundesliga victories in a row. The Nordkurve12 supporters group knows the Werkself will therefore once again be reliant on the vociferous support of the fans, and has once again called for the ‘Finally Red’ campaign in the run-in. Today’s matchday news.
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Video games manufacturer Electronic Arts (EA), together with the German Football League (DFL), announced the top male and female selections for the 2025/26 Bundesliga season this week. Bayer 04 striker Vanessa Fudalla is in the starting eleven of the women's "Team of the Season". Alejandro Grimaldo and Aleix Garcia have been selected as bench players in the men's team.
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