Ahead of the first training session in the morning, the second half of the Werkself squad were happily in front of the cameras for Media Day 2022. As in the day before, today's activities again included photo, give and video productions for the club social media channels. The goalkeeping trio of captain Lukas Hradecky, Andrey Lunev and Niklas Lomb covered five media shoots from eight in the morning.
The whole squad then headed for the training ground. The Seoane team competed in different small group matches. And defender Jonathan Tah was back on the pitch at the BayArena with the ball at his feet for the first time after the summer break as he completed large parts of full training.
There was more good news away from the pitch: Amine Adli completed an individual session with fitness coach Daniel Jouvin as he worked on making his comeback.
Once again, there were lots of Black and Red fans at the training ground to follow the Werkself session from close quarters. Afterwards, the players took time out for young and old alike for photos and autographs – the most popular photo motif of the day: Captain Lukas Hradecky and head coach Gerardo Seoane.
During the lunch break, it was time for Jonathan Tah, Robert Andrich, Odilon Kossounou, Paulinho and Mitchel Bakker to produce their best smiles in front of the cameras. One or two players had fun with their teammates – the behind-the-scenes insights are already on the club's social media channels.
The Werkself had a second session in the afternoon inside the BayArena. The focus was on stability and movement drills.
At the end of the day, the final group consisting of Jeremie Frimpong, Exequiel Palacios, Piero Hincapie and Timothy Fosu-Mensah completed the different photo stops before departing for a well-deserved evening off.
The Werkself will start the last session on the pitches next to the BayArena at 10.30 CET tomorrow Wednesday 13 July. This session is also open to Black and Red supporters. The Leverkusen squad then head off to Austria the day after for a week-long training camp in Zell am See-Kaprun.
Hans-Peter Lehnhoff is 59 today. The midfielder joined the Werkself at the age of 31 in 1994. Up to the end of his playing career in 1999, he made 177 appearances for the Black and Reds scoring 17 goals and providing 30 assists.
After hanging up his boots, the former Werkself player took up a role with the support team with the Werkself and became the first team liaison manager of a professional German side. The Alsdorf-born player has spent 28 of his 59 years under the Bayer Cross, which is almost half of his life – a true stalwart. Bayer 04 wish him many happy returns.
Exciting experiences and exclusive insights into the Werkself and the BayArena awaited the young footballers from the BA04 Football Academy Guangzhou in China during their visit to the Rhineland this week. As well as taking part in a joint training session with the Bayer 04 Football Academy, the youngsters marvelled at the Bundesliga club’s stadium during a guided tour. The highlight of the visit was a private press conference with former Bayer 04 striker Stefan Kießling, during which he shared tips from his own career with the young players. On Saturday afternoon, 10 October, the group will round off their visit by supporting the Werkself in the away match in Mainz.
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Fun, games and promising talent: At the fourth Bayer 04 Junior Girls’ Talent Day at the Kurtekotten training centre, 90 football-mad girls had the chance to put themselves forward for the Werkself youth teams. During a 90-minute training session, children born between 2011 and 2019 had the chance to demonstrate their skills.
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Despite the international break, numerous Werkself fans turned up at the BayArena on Saturday 3 October. The occasion: Bayer 04, together with Bayer Vital and main sponsor BarmeniaGothaer, organised a Health Day. In the stadium’s Premium Lounge, guests listened to fascinating talks on the subject of cancer, featuring, amongst others, Bayer 04 record appearance holder Rüdiger Vollborn and former Werkself player Hans Sarpei. Afterwards, young and old alike enjoyed interactive stations such as a grip strength test and eye pupil test.
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In issue #56 of Werkself Magazine, Afonso Moreira offers some interesting insights into his home country, Portugal, as part of the ‘Sag mal’ (Tell me) feature. Among other things, the 21-year-old talks about his favourite places in the country on the Iberian Peninsula, the local cuisine and music, as well as heroes and historical figures beyond the world of football. ‘Sag mal’ with Afonso Moreira!
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