Before the Swiss coach fielded questions on the training ground, he fulfilled another function on the pitch. Seoane had a whistle round his neck as the took the role of referee. He intervened – albeit rarely – in the event of unfair challenges and clear offsides.
The 43-year-old coach again welcomed the U19 players Sadik Fofana and Ayman Aourir plus the brothers Noah and Leon Pesch at the start of the week.
Missing players included Edmond Tapsoba and Odilon Kossounou, who are at the Africa Cup of Nations, plus the injured Julian Baumgartlinger and Charles Aránguiz. Timothy Fosu-Mensah was also absent but the Dutchman could return to training during the week according to Seoane. A return to full training is also possible for Amine Adli with the Frenchman completing an individual session on the pitch on Monday.
There was good news about Piero Hincapie: The 19-year-old defender had been left stranded in his home country of Ecuador following a positive Covid-19 test but he has now tested negative and thereby fulfilled the requirements for the return journey to Germany. "We’re happy that Piero can now return and that we have one more player available," said Seoane. "I hope he will be able to have two or three days work with the ball before Saturday's game."
At the moment, it appears likely that the Ecuador international will be in the squad for the Werkself opening match in 2021 against Union Berlin. The game between the teams in fourth and seventh place at the BayArena kicks off at 15.30 CET on Saturday, 8 January.
Edmond Tapsoba and Odilon Kossounou are in the last few days before the start of the Africa Cup of Nations. While Kossounou has been exclusively involved in training sessions with the Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso with defender Tapsoba played a friendly against Gabon on Sunday. The warm-up match against the team including Arsenal striker Pierre Emerik Aubameyang, with the Leverkusen player in the Burkina Faso starting line-up, ended with a 3-0 victory.
Tapsoba and Co. are in the opening match of the African tournament against Cameroon on 9 January; the Ivory Coast with Kossounou start three days later against Equatorial Guinea.
Be part of the family, everyone is welcome in Germany's top flight: The German Football League (DFL) are using this motto to get fans in the mood for the start of the second half of the Bundesliga season. Matchday 18 begins on Friday, 7 January with the game between Bayern Munich and Borussia Mönchengladbach. Click HERE for the Tweet.
After the opening match in January against Union Berlin, the Werkself play Borussia Mönchengladbach (15 January) and FC Augsburg (22 January) before the weekend off at the end of the month.
Having worked as Bayern Munich's video analyst under coach Pep Guardiola, Lars Kornetka joined the Werkself in the summer of 2014 as analyst assistant coach. He spent four years under the Bayer Cross working in that role with the longest time under head coach Roger Schmidt (125 games). After that he moved on to RB Leipzig and PSV Eindhoven and a few months ago joined Lokomotiv Moscow. Kornetka is now working there as the sporting and communications director. Bayer 04 wish the former Leverkusen man many happy returns on his 44th birthday in the Russian capital.
A fresh look for the BayArena: The Bayer 04 stadium will have new seating in the form of folding seats for the 2026/27 campaign that will ensure significantly improved seating comfort and simplified movement within the rows of seats. As part of routine replacement after 17 years, fans of the Werkself were able to purchase the existing seats, used to witness the first German league title in the club's history. In addition, a large proportion of the seats will be donated to charitable projects, primarily in the local region. Bayer 04 fans can look forward to new, functional folding seats for the season opener at the beginning of August - still in the club colours of black and red, of course. A glimpse at the BayArena during the refurbishment.
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On Monday evening, 8 June, around 250 people came to the Bürgerhaus Baumberg at the invitation of Bayer 04 to find out details of the new plans for the campus on Alfred-Nobel-Straße at an information event. More compact, greener and with many advantages for Monheim am Rhein - those are the aims. There were lively discussions for around three hours and some misunderstandings were cleared up.
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Werkself player Montrell Culbreath and Bayer 04 loanee Francis Onyeka are part of Germany's final squad for the U19 European Championships this summer. The tournament is in Wales from 24 June to 12 July.
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When Malik Tillman arrived at Bayer 04 Leverkusen from PSV Eindhoven last summer, he did more than just add attacking midfield strength to the team — he reconnected the club with a unique and understated American lineage that stretches back more than three decades.
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Bayer 04 are away to third-division club SV Wehen Wiesbaden in the first round of the 2026/27 DFB Pokal. That was the outcome of the draw on Saturday night, 6 June, at the German Football Museum in Dortmund. The Werkself first round tie will be played between 21 and 24 August. The exact date has yet to be finalised.
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