Everything is going like clockwork for Hakan Calhanoglu when he puts on a Turkey shirt. Four weeks ago the Werkself midfielder scored the goal for Turkey in a 1-1 draw in the World Cup qualifier away to Croatia. And another Calhanoglu goal brought a point for Turkey on Thursday night in a 2-2 draw against Ukraine. With his team 2-0 down Hakan held his nerve when he converted a penalty with eight minutes to play to level at 2-2 to secure an important point in the race for a European qualifying slot for the 2018 World Cup. Calhanoglu also provided the assist for the first goal from Ozan Tufan with an accurate corner. Ömer Toprak returned to the starting line-up for his national side for the first time in two years.
Fortunately and Charles Aránguiz, who played the full 90 minutes, the World Cup qualifier in Ecuador ended with a bitter disappointment. The Copa America winner's lost 3-0. The hosts were 2-0 up at half-time and the third came just after the restart. Brazil coasted to a 5-0 win against Bolivia. Wendell, who was in the Seleção squad for the first time, did not make his debut for the record World Cup winners. The South American World Cup qualifying group sees Brazil in second place with 18 points from nine games, one point behind leaders Uruguay, and Chile are seventh with just 11 points.
Austria had to settle for a 2-2 draw in the home game against Wales but they twice came back from behind with Marco Arnautovic scoring both goals. Julian Baumgartlinger was the Austria captain in his 50th international. Aleksandar Dragovic was also in the starting eleven. And the Werkself trio for Austria was complete after 15 minutes when goalkeeper Ramazan Özcan replace the injured keeper Robert Almer.
Ran out easy winners with a 6-0 victory in Kosovo. Tin Jedvaj did not play. Australia also drew 2-2 in Saudi Arabia with Robbie Kruse playing the full 90 minutes.
Once again, well over 100 Werkself fans were delighted to receive an invitation from the club’s record appearance-maker, Rüdiger Vollborn, to the sold-out Schwadbud at the BayArena. This time, the supporters listened as the club historian provided fascinating, exclusive insights into the period from Bayer 04 being founded in 1904 to the club’s promotion to the Bundesliga in 1979. A journey through time is also planned for the upcoming ‘Rudi lädt ein’ event in early November – this time focusing on the years of the Nazi regime.
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Happy children’s faces at the SSV Lützenkirchen training ground: For the 25th time, the Birkenberg soccer school – organised by SportBund Leverkusen – offered participating youngsters an exciting holiday activity. Meeting a Bayer 04 player has now become a cherished tradition. This time, Ibrahim Maza visited the 150 children and spoke to them about his World Cup experiences, amongst other things. “It’s always lovely to see the children’s enthusiasm for football,” said the 20-year-old, after bringing a sparkle to many eyes with selfies and autographs.
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One day after the successful DFB Pokal first round tie at SV Wehen Wiesbaden (4–0), the mood was understandably really good: Over 400 Bayer 04 supporters gathered on Sunday, 23 August, for the annual fan club meet-up at the BayArena and got in the mood for the new season through direct and informal discussions with Bayer 04 management, head coach Carles Martínez and Werkself players.
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Werkself-TV shows the highlights of the Bayer 04 women's 2-0 win at RB Leipzig on the 1st matchday of the Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga 2026/27.
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