That’s a great opportunity for all Bayer 04 fans: The attractive friendly against the four-time European cup winners from Porto, with 31 domestic league titles and 16 cup triumphs to their credit, will be broadcast live at bayer04.de and is also live on Facebook – as was recently the case when the Werkself clocked up a 4-0 win against Koblenz.
Head coach Roger Schmidt and his team will face a tougher challenge this time round. “We know Porto are a top team playing at the highest level. It will be interesting to see who’s further on in the pre-season,” said Kevin Kampl. And his midfield team-mate and Copa America winner Charles Aránguiz, who returned to training this week, added: “Friendlies against top teams like Porto are always helpful.” Bayer 04 fans will be able to see for themselves from 18.00 CET by watching the live stream at bayer04.de and on Facebook.
Bender and Brandt off to Frankfurt on Thursday
For the captain Lars Bender and Julian Brandt it will the last appearance in a Werkself shirt for the next few weeks: Thursday marks the start of the Olympic adventure in Rio for the two players. The Germany squad under coach Horst Hrubesch come together for three days in Frankfurt and fly out from there on Saturday to Brazil.
The Golden Boy Top 100 traditionally lists Europe’s most promising young players. In the latest update, published to mark the start of the new season, four current Werkself players – alongside loanee Francis Onyeka – feature on the list. This means Bayer 04 have the most players in contention of any Bundesliga club.
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Goalkeeper Rafaela Borggräfe will continue to play for Bayer 04 Leverkusen next season. The loan of the Germany U23 international, who joined from Liverpool in the winter, has been extended by a further year.
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The Bayer 04 delegation, led by Fernando Carro, CEO, concluded their multi-day trip to Brazil with a visit to the community-based organisation Bola Pra Frente in Rio de Janeiro – founded by former Werkself player Jorginho. During the visit, Bayer 04 committed to extending support for the Bola Pra Frente project for a further five years. In addition, Jorginho, a member of the Brazil 1994 World Cup-winning squad, was named Bayer 04’s second official club legend. With the visit to São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, the club has strengthened the relationships built up over the years in one of Bayer 04’s most important international markets.
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Ten years after retiring as a player, Kristina Sundov is returning to the Bayer 04 Women’s team as assistant coach. The 39-year-old former Croatia international takes over from Remzi Kahraman, who has taken up a new challenge abroad. She has been given a contract to 30 June 2028.
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The training pitches at the BayArena are already buzzing with activity again, even before training officially begins next week. On Monday morning, a small group from the Werkself first-team squad completed a session lasting around an hour. Both new and familiar faces were present.
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