Werkself head coach Xabi Alonso will welcome his players back to the pitch from tomorrow. The first session starts at 11.00 CET on training pitches 1 and 2 at the BayArena. The team have five training sessions this week. There are two on Wednesday at 10.30 CET on the pitch and another inside the BayArena at 14.30 CET.
On all the other days, training will start as usual at 11.00 CET. All sessions are open to fans.
Madi Monamay will immediately join all the Werkself training sessions. The U19 player will train with the team under head coach Xabi Alonso for the time being. The 16-year-old defender from Belgium will continue with pre-match training and matches with the Leverkusen U19s.
Several Werkself players are already hard at work: The recently injured goalkeeper Andrey Lunev, Joshua Eze, Ayman Azhil plus today's birthday boy Timothy Fosu-Mensah are at the Werkstatt rehab and training centre at Bayer 04 on the third floor at the BayArena. Patrik Schick has already been working hard on his comeback every day in between the festive holidays. He will also be there tomorrow along with the other players.
The Werkself are set to play the first friendly of the year on Saturday 7 January. Venezia from Italy, including former Leverkusen player Joel Pohjanpalo, are the visitors to the Ulrich Haberland Stadium. The kick-off is at 15.00 CET.
The last of four winter friendlies will be played a week later: Leverkusen entertain Danish champions FC Copenhagen at the BayArena on Sunday 15 January (kick-off: 13.00 CET).
Tickets are available for both matches. Click HERE to access the ticket shop.
The Bayer 04 Women also return on Tuesday. Head coach Robert de Pauw will lead the first session of 2023 with his players at the Kurtekotten Performance Centre.
The Leverkusen women's team also have their first friendly on Saturday 7 January. The top-flight Dutch side Fortuna Sittard are the visitors at the Kurtekotten Performance Centre. The kick-off is at 14.00 CET and entrance is free of charge.
Strengthening the Bayer 04 Leverkusen youth teams: Konstantinos Kotsifakis will join the Werkself from Bundesliga 2 club Hertha Berlin for the 2026/27 season, where he will be a permanent member of the Leverkusen U19 coaching set-up. The German-Greek will also take on an operational role in coaching the Bayer 04 Future Team. The 29-year-old was most recently head coach of the U17s at Hertha Berlin.
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Another award for the Bayer 04 head groundsman and staff: After coming top in the 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2024/25 seasons, the BayArena pitch came second in the Bundesliga Pitch of the Year ranking for the 2025/26 season. VfL Wolfsburg secured the top spot this year, with TSG Hoffenheim in third place.
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Opening opponents, derby weekends, the opponents in the season finale: This information and more will be available to Bayer 04 fans on Thursday, 2 July, when the 2026/27 Bundesliga fixture list is published.
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The next footballing highlight is just around the corner: the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the 23rd edition of the tournament, will be held in the USA, Canada and Mexico and feature 48 teams for the first time. Bayer04.de has all the latest on the Werkself players called up to represent their countries.
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While the majority of the Bayer 04 Women are enjoying their summer break, nine Werkself players will be on duty for their national teams in the coming days. Three of them are competing for a place at the World Cup, while six are involved in two friendlies with the Germany U23 team.
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