The new head coach gained important first impressions of his new team during the first session. "It's good I've got a couple of days before the next game," said Korkut: "I want to use them to get a feeling for the team." The second session held on Tuesday afternoon was behind closed doors.
Krösche and Wolf leave Bayer 04
The new boss was accompanied by his assistant Xaver Zembrod who was his number two at Hannover 96 and FC Kaiserslautern. The 50-year-old joined the coaching staff on Monday. Bayer 04 have parted company with Roger Schmidt as well as his assistant coach Markus Krösche and Jörn Wolf, the coordinator of the coaching and support staff.
Bellarabi shirt for the football museum
The next training session at the BayArena is on Wednesday (10.00 CET) and is open to the public. In the afternoon, CEO Michael Schade will present the shirt worn by Karim Bellarabi, when he scored the 50,000th goal in the history of the Bundesliga, to the German Football Museum in Dortmund.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen have appointed Carles Martínez Novell as the new head coach. The 42-year-old Spaniard worked for FC Toulouse in the French Ligue 1 until the end of the season. Martínez finished last term in ninth place with the club from the south of France. He will take over the Werkself on 1 July 2026 and has signed a contract to 30 June 2028. Martínez, whose contract with Toulouse expires at the end of the month, succeeds Kasper Hjulmand at Leverkusen, who is leaving the club after one season.
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Welcome to Leverkusen, Carles Martínez Novell. Bayer 04 have appointed the 42-year-old Spaniard as the new head coach on a contract to 2028. Martínez most recently worked for FC Toulouse in the French Ligue 1 until the end of the season. He previously spent four years at Barcelona's legendary academy La Masia in his home city. Bayer04.de introduces Martínez in more detail.
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Bayer 04 plans for the 2026/27 pre-season continue to take shape. The Werkself will kick off the new season in mid-July with the return to the training ground. The highlight will be the official season opener on 8 August at the BayArena, including a friendly against La Liga club Sevilla. Friendlies in Germany will take the team to neighbouring Monheim, Offenbach and Jena.
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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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