Head coach Peter Bosz can again call on one more option in defence: The period of self-isolation for Edmond Tapsoba ended at the weekend. The 21 year old completed an individual session at the start of the week and took part in full training on Tuesday morning. Tapsoba tested positive for Covid-19 after returning from international duty with Burkina Faso.
Also back on the training ground on Tuesday was Nadiem Amiri after illness forced him to drop out of the clash with Hertha Berlin (0:0). The duo are an option for the squad for the Europa League away game at Nice on Thursday 3 December (kick-off: 21.00 CET).
The Bayer 04 team will head off for the south of France on Wednesday afternoon. The first duty on the Côte d'Azur is the pre-match press conference at the stadium. Head coach Bosz will be joined on the top table by central defender Jonathan Tah to answer questions on the fourth Europa League game of the season posed remotely by journalists.
Following his first-team debut in the Europa League home game against Hapoel Be’er Sheva (4-1), Emrehan Gedikli is now listed in the senior squad at bayer04.de plus in the print publications Werks11 Magazin and BayArena Aktuell. The 17-year-old central striker has played at Bayer 04 from the U8 side upwards. Information on the fifth youngest debutant at Bayer 04 is available on his profile page.
Who does not deserve a surprise from Bayer 04 for doing something special this year? Come to the Wiesdorf fan shop (Wiesdorfer Pl. 9, 51373 Leverkusen), fill out a card and hang it on the wishing tree - and the person you've named is in the draw!
Bayer 04 were away to Schalke 04 on 1 December 1979 on Bundesliga matchday 15. At that point, the Werkself were in twelfth position in the table in their first season in the top-flight. Schalke were fifth. Up to the match in Gelsenkirchen, Leverkusen were stronger at home but without a win on the road; but that changed on the first day in December.
Thanks to a brace from striker Peter Szech (40’, 71’), the Black and Reds beat the Royal Blues 2-0 to banish the bad luck away from home in the Bundesliga. The Neuss-born Szech played for Leverkusen from 1978 to 1982 before joining rivals Bayer 05 (predecessors of today's third division club KFC Uerdingen 05) and he ended his playing career in 1984 at RW Essen.
On Sunday 6 December (kick-off: 18.00 CET) the Black and Reds are again away to Schalke 04 – this time the roles are reversed. While the Werkself are currently third in the table, the Royal Blues are bottom. And in the away form table, Bayer 04 have considerably more points than back then: Leverkusen are second with eleven points from five games. Hopefully the result of the forthcoming game at the Veltins Arena can be a repeat of 1979…
The former Werkself centre forward Marcus Feinbier celebrated his 51st birthday on Monday. Born in Berlin, Feinbier played for the Leverkusen U19 team for a season in 1987 and then went on to spend six years in the first-team squad. During this time, he played 69 Bundesliga games for Bayer 04 and scored three goals. After his time under the Bayer Cross, Feinbier moved on to Hertha Berlin, Alemannia Aachen, FC Nürnberg and Fortuna Düsseldorf. Most recently, the 51-year-old was head coach at the amateur club FC Leverkusen. Bayer 04 wish: Belated happy birthday, Marcus.
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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A great honour for Bayer 04 Women's German international: as part of the 2025 Sports Awards, Carlotta Wamser entered her name into the City of Leverkusen's Golden Book. On Tuesday, she looked back on a special year in a talk in the Morsbroich Castle hall of mirrors.
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It was a disappointing night in Athens: The Werkself lost 2-0 away to Olympiacos on Matchday 7 in the league phase of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League campaign. In a match that was intense and fiery from the outset, the high-pressing home side made the better start and took the lead through Costinha on two minutes. Although the Werkself had a number of chances to equalise, the clinical Greek side increased the lead to 2-0 shortly before half-time (45+1’). In the second half, Leverkusen once again gave their all and showed total commitment but, despite their best efforts, the Black and Reds were unable to break down the Olympiacos defence on the night.
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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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