"He's tricky, quick to pose danger in front of goal and he accepts responsibility – and all that at the age of 21. Kai Havertz is on course to be a world star," raves bundesliga.de about our number 29. "Very calm on the ball, excellent technique and the instinct of a top goalscorer, Havertz is the key player for the Werkself. The Germany international is a real all-rounder, two-footed and good in the air," the tribute continues.
Havertz has scored 12 goals in the Bundesliga this season and was the provider of another six. With his goal on matchday 29 against SC Freiburg – his 35th Bundesliga goal to date – he went into the history books: No other player under 21 reached that milestone before him.
Click HERE to vote for Kai Havertz – up to Monday, 22 June (12.00 CET).
Other candidates for Player of the Season are Robert Lewandowski, Serge Gnabry (both Bayern Munich), Amine Harit (Schalke 04), Timo Werner (RB Leipzig), Erling Haaland and Jadon Sancho (both Borussia Dortmund).
Bayer 04 have comfortably reached the DFB Pokal second round thanks to a 4–0 victory away to Liga 3 side SV Wehen Wiesbaden. Patrik Schick put the Werkself ahead in the first 45 in the first competitive match under head coach Carles Martínez with debuts for new signings Miguel Gutiérrez, Afonso Moreira and Facundo Medina. After the break, Lucas Vázquez (47'), Nathan Tella (69') and Christian Kofane (79') also found the back of the net.
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Today brings the first match of the season for the Werkself. Bayer 04 kick off the 2026/27 campaign today, Saturday 22 August, at 13:00 CEST with a first-round DFB Pokal tie away to third-tier side SV Wehen Wiesbaden. The 3,700 travelling fans can not only look forward to what will hopefully be a successful start to the season, but also now organise their journeys to Black and Reds games even more easily via the WERKSELFgo car-share platform. Meanwhile, following two defeats at the start of the league season, SV Wehen are hoping to spring a surprise in the DFB Pokal tie. Today’s matchday news.
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Carolin Simon is the new captain of the Bayer 04 women’s team. The full-back, who joined from Bayern Munich in the summer, will take over the captain’s armband for the 2026/27 season. Simon returned to Leverkusen in the summer after ten years away. The 33-year-old succeeds goalkeeper Friederike Repohl, who retired at the end of last season.
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With the 2026/27 season set to kick off with a DFB Pokal tie away to SV Wehen Wiesbaden (Saturday, 22 August, 13:00 CEST), the squad numbers for two Werkself players have now been confirmed. New signing Afonso Moreira will wear the number 9, which he has already worn in pre-season friendlies. Lucas Vázquez is switching from number 21 to number 17 – the number he wore successfully at Real Madrid for many years.
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