He certainly deserves it: Patrik Schick is in the vote for the Bundesliga Player of the Month award for December. The Bayer 04 centre forward scored a remarkable eight goals in four Bundesliga matches including the 7-1 victory over SpVgg Greuther Fürth when he became the first Werkself player to score four goals in a match in Germany's top flight. You can vote for Patrik HERE.
In addition to Schick, the other nominees are Robert Lewandowski, Serge Gnabry (both Bayern Munich), Christopher Nkunku (RB Leipzig), Jesper Lindström (Eintracht Frankfurt) and Nico Schlotterbeck (SC Freiburg).
Florian Wirtz won the Player of the Month award in September.
And the Werkself striker Patrik Schick could also get his hands on the 2021 FIFA Puskas Award in the next few weeks. The 25-year-old is one of three finalists for his goal from 45 yards out in the European Championship match against Scotland on 14 June. Also nominated are the Argentinian forward Erik Lamela (Sevilla) and the Iranian striker Mehdi Taremi (FC Porto).
The trophy is awarded for the most beautiful goal in the calendar year and the winner will be announced in Zurich on 17 January. The current award winner for 2020 is the former Leverkusen player Heung-Min Son who joined Tottenham Hotspur from Bayer 04 in 2015.
The winner is chosen by an international panel consisting of a group of FIFA legends plus fans from across the world registered on FIFA.com. The votes of these two groups carry equal weight.
Patrik Schick has already secured a club award: Werkself fans voted his goal in the 2-2 draw with TSG Hoffenheim in the final home game of the year in 2021 as the Goal of the Month for December presented by like2drive. The Czech Republic striker made it 2-0 on 63 minutes with an impressive header from 12 yards out. Congratulations, Patrik. You can see that goal again here HERE.
After Amine Adli on Monday and Timothy Fosu-Mensah on Tuesday, Piero Hincapie was also on the training ground at the BayArena for the first time this year on Wednesday. The defender returned from his home country of Ecuador yesterday evening after having been forced to self-isolate due to a positive Covid-19 test.
Under the direction of fitness coach Daniel Jouvin, Hincapie completed an individual session along with Adli and Fosu-Mensah. The other Werkself players had Wednesday off after two intensive days of training. The first match of the New Year is on Saturday, 8 January (kick-off: 15.30 CET) against Union Berlin at the BayArena.
Thomas Kleine and second division Fortuna Düsseldorf have mutually agreed the termination of his contract. The former Bayer 04 player, who made 22 appearances for the Werkself as well as 95 for the Black and Red second team, had been the assistant coach at Fortuna since 2017. Kleine’s successor at Düsseldorf is Manfred Stefes. The 54-year-old last worked alongside Lucien Favre at Borussia Dortmund up to December 2020.
The Werkself congratulate Atakan Akkaynak on his 23rd birthday. The Troisdorf-born player of Turkish heritage joined Leverkusen in 2006 from TuS 07 Oberlar. He won the German U17 league title in 2016 and played in all the Black and Red youth teams up to 2018. The midfielder was then signed by the Dutch top-flight club Willem II Tilburg. After spells at Caykur Rizespor in Turkey and Türkgücü Munich, the former U19 international has been playing for Corum FK in the Turkish third division this season. Many happy returns from Bayer 04.
The German Football League (DFL) has shortlisted Martin Terrier’s scorpion kick goal against 1. FC Köln for the 2025/26 Bundesliga Goal of the Season. Bayer 04 fans can vote for their favourite goal via the Bundesliga app from now until Monday 25 May (23:59 CEST).
Show more
Bayer 04 will be preparing young talents for a potential sporting career in an even more systematic way in future. The club is breaking new ground to help develop their academic, social and personal skills as well. With the ‘Haus der Talente' or 'Talent House’, Bayer 04 Leverkusen Fußball GmbH is creating a new centre for the development of young athletes in a central location in Leverkusen. Once completed – expected to be in the summer of 2027 – the project will be run in partnership with TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen e.V.
Show more
Werkself-TV shows the highlights of the Bayer 04 women's 1-3 loss against Werder Bremen on the 26th matchday of the Google Pixel Frauen-Bundesliga 2025/26.
Show more
Bayer 04 Women have finished in fifth place after the best Bundesliga season in the club's history in terms of points. Roberto Pätzold's side went down 3-1 at home to SV Werder Bremen on the final matchday. With 46 points and 15 wins, they've bettered the previous record campaign of 2024/25. Despite periods of pressure, Cornelia Kramer's 73rd-minute strike was not enough at the Ulrich-Haberland-Stadion, and the Werkself miss out on European qualification despite a strong end to the season.
Show more
Bayer 04 Leverkusen have agreed a conract extension with home-grown talent Sofie Zdebel by a further year ahead of schedule. The 21-year-old Germany U23 international will stay at the club until 30 June 2028.
Show more
