Joel Pohjanpalo appears to be unlucky with injuries. On Sunday, the Finland team including Lukas Hradecky clocked up a 2-1 against Bulgaria in the UEFA Nations League – an injury brought the game to an early end for Pohjanpalo on 35 minutes. A negative diagnosis followed on Monday, “a serious injury to the left ankle,” as announced by FC Union Berlin, where the striker is under contract to the end of the season. The 26-year-old will now undergo an operation and is set to be out of action for an extended period. A lot of Danger fans will be concerned when they hear ‘ankle’ and ‘Pohjanpalo’ in the same sentence as the striker was sidelined for 437 days on 2018/19. Back then, he suffered a protracted circulation problem in his right ankle. Keep your head up, Jolle! We wish you a speedy recovery.
The France U21s beat Switzerland 3-1 in a Euros qualifier on Monday night. Moussa Diaby came on for ‘Les Bleus’ on 82 minutes. The France U21s have not lost a single game in Group B of the qualifying rounds for the forthcoming European Championships. The team secured qualification for the Euros with a 5-0 victory over Liechtenstein in their previous group match. Bayer 04 teammate Edmond Tapsoba and his Burkina Faso side drew 0-0 with Malawi in an Africa Cup qualifier. Burkina Faso are currently top of Group B. There are still two games to play.
Germany are away to Spain in the Nations League on Tuesday night at 20.45 CET (live on ARD). The Werkself duo Jonathan Tah and Nadiem Amiri are hoping to play in Seville. A win would seal top spot in the group for Germany in League A. Ahead of the clash, second-placed Spain, with eight points, are on the heels of Germany (nine points).
Today is also a matchday for Florian Wirtz and Lennart Grill. The Germany U21s play Wales in a Euro qualifier (18.15 CET, live on Pro7 Maxx). Germany are level on points with Wales. If Bosnia-Herzegovina help out by beating Belgium, then a win for the Germany U21s under Stefan Kuntz would put them top of Group 9.
The Bayer 04 eSports duo Kai ‘DETO’ Wollin and Fabian ‘B04_DUBZJE’ De Cae are in action in matchdays 3 and 4 in the Virtual Bundesliga on Tuesday afternoon. From 16.30 CET the opponents are SC Paderborn 04 and 20.00 CET sees the start of the clash on the console with FC St. Pauli. For the start of the new VBL season, Wollin and De Cae clocked up two wins on the double matchday against Holstein Kiel and VfL Wolfsburg. Now the Black and Red duo are defending top spot in the table. Both matches are live on Twitch.
A Bayer 04 legend and honorary captain has his birthday! Bernd ‘Schnix’ Schneider is 47 today (Tuesday). The midfielder joined Bayer 04 in 1999 and played for the club for ten years. Schneider had his heyday under the Bayer Cross: In 2003/04, the now 47-year-old was one of the most prolific players in the Bundesliga with ten goals. He made 366 appearances for the Black and Reds and scored 52 goals – and 80 assists also deserve a mention. With the Werkself in 2002, he was runner-up in the league, DFB Cup and Champions League finalist. ‘The white Brazilian’ ended his playing career in 2009 and is now working as a players agent. Happy Birthday, Schnix!
The fourth European away trip of the season in the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 takes the Werkself to the Greek capital. Head coach Kasper Hjulmand's team are away to Greek double winners Olympiacos on matchday seven in the UCL league phase. The match at the Karaiskakis Stadium is on Tuesday, 20 January (kick-off: 21:00 CET). We'll be taking you on a trip to Athens and reporting on the Werkself close-up...
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen have agreed a loan deal with Bundesliga club Borussia Mönchengladbach for Argentinian striker Alejo Sarco. The 20-year-old joins Mönchengladbach with immediate effect for the rest of the season.
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The Werkself are away to Greek double winners Olympiacos on matchday 7 in the league phase of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League campaign. Tonight, 20 January (kick-off: 22:00 local time/21:00 CET), Bayer 04 will not only face a familiar face in Panagiotis Retsos, but also an experienced and successful team in their Greek top-flight opponents. The Olympiacos midfield and forward line in particular are peppered with seasoned veterans from top European clubs - but even they will first have to find solutions against the Werkself defence that has recently performed with aplomb in the UCL. The matchday news.
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The Werkself are away to Greek double winners Olympiacos on matchday 7 of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League league phase. Ahead of the clash on Tuesday, 20 January (kick-off: 21:00 CET), head coach Kasper Hjulmand spoke about anticipation for the game. Werkself player Ibrahim Maza also gave an insight into dealing with the recent setbacks.
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After their first win on matchday 6 in the UCL league phase, Olympiacos are still in with a good chance of reaching the play-offs in the UEFA Champions League. The 2024 UEFA Conference League winners will be looking to go one better in their home match against Bayer 04 this Tuesday, 20 January (kick-off: 21:00 CET), but their stop scorer is unavailable. The lowdown on our next opponents.
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