Six Werkself pros on tour
The Werkself go into the final international break of the year on the back of a 1-1 draw at FC Augsburg. Bayer 04 again have a number of players called up to their national squads.
Regardless of the late withdrawal of Benjamin Henrichs and Jonathan Tah, head coach Heiko Herrlich will have to make do without six first team players. While it is the last chance saloon for two of the Werkself stars and their national teams, the others are involved in friendly fixtures.
Mehmedi and Retsos in race for world cup
Admir Mehmedi (Switzerland) and Panos Retsos (Greece) are battling for a place in next year's World Cup finals in Russia: Switzerland are away to Northern Ireland on Thursday (9 November, 20.45 CET) with the return match in Basel on Sunday (12 November, 18.00 CET). Greece take on Croatia in the World Cup play-offs – the first leg is on Thursday (20.45 CET) and the second leg is at home in Piraeus on Sunday (20.45 CET).
Bernd Leno and Julian Brandt are under far less pressure ahead of joining the Germany squad on Tuesday. They are possibles for the friendlies against England on Friday (10 November, 21 .00 CET) and France in Cologne a week on Tuesday (14 November, 20.45 CET).
Schreck And Akkaynak in GERMANY U19 squad
The captain of Austria, Julian Baumgartlinger, has also been called up for a friendly: 'Baumi' and his fellow Austrians face Uruguay (Tuesday, 14. November, 20.45 CET). Heiko Herrlich will be without the services of Joel Pohjanpalo over the next few days as the 23-year-old is in the Finland squad for the game against Estonia on Thursday 9 November at 18.00 CET.
In addition to the six players from the first team, two Bayer 04 youth players are also away on international duty: Sam Schreck and Atakan Akkaynak are set to play for the Germany U19s in a friendly against Cyprus (Sunday, 12 November, 14.30 CET).
The aforementioned Bayer 04 players are unavailable for the Werkself in the friendly against second division MSV Duisburg on Thursday (9 November) at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium (15.00 CET, free entry).
Related News
Champions League - 24.02.2026
0-0 draw with Olympiacos puts Werkself in Champions League Round of 16
A disciplined defensive performance in the second leg saw Bayer 04 prevail against Olympiacos in the play-offs of the UEFA Champions League 2025/26. Thanks to the 2-0 away win in the first leg, the goalless draw at home at the BayArena was enough to ensure progress to the next round. The Black and Reds kept their opponents away from their goal for the best part of 90 minutes.
Show more
Champions League - 24.02.2026
Matchday news #B04OLY: Focused on the second leg - Kießling and Flekken on Werkself Radio
Bayer 04 can go through to the Round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League for the ninth time tonight, 24 February (kick-off: 21:00 CET) and be in the top 16 clubs in Europe. A good omen: Leverkusen have progressed to the next round after winning the first leg in 20 of their 22 knockout rounds in European competitions to date. For their part, Greek record champions Olympiacos rested several players for last weekend’s league fixture ahead of the play-off second leg at the BayArena and will now do everything in their power to turn the tide with their usual aggressive and high pressing. The discussions on Werkself radio are likely to be just as intense as the battle on the pitch, with commentator Florian Bechholz welcoming honorary captain Stefan Kießling and goalkeeper Mark Flekken. Today’s matchday news.
Show more
Werkself-TV - 23.02.2026
Hjulmand ahead of #B04OLY: ‘Take the game very seriously, it's not over yet’
With the advantage of the 2-0 first-leg win in the play-offs, the Werkself are looking to book their place in the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League at the sold-out BayArena. Ahead of the home game against Olympiacos on Tuesday, 24 February (kick-off: 21:00 CET), coach Kasper Hjulmand and goalkeeper Janis Blaswich spoke about the position ahead of the match, the visitors' strength at set-pieces and a personnel issue for the home side.
Show more
Champions League - 23.02.2026
Opponents update - Mendilibar: ‘We need to be more precise in our finishing’
With a win in the Greek Super League last weekend, Olympiacos achieved success on the pitch ahead of the UEFA Champions League play-off second leg at Bayer 04 on Tuesday, 24 February (kick-off: 21:00 CET). Coach José Luis Mendilibar rested many of his regular starters.
Show more
