+++16 March, 16.41 CET+++
Good news from the French Football Association today: Werkself player Moussa Diaby has been called up by Didier Deschamps, the coach of the World Cup runners-up, for the EURO qualifiers against the Netherlands (24 March) and in Ireland three days later. The 23-year-old Bayer 04 winger has made eight international appearances for the Équipe Tricolore to date.
+++16 March, 12.13 CET+++
The warm-up routine at the team hotel is over. The session included muscle exercises, mobility work plus stretching, and - to the delight of the players - it was rounded off with football tennis. Our lads are up to speed and ready for tonight’s game.
+++16 March, 10.49 CET+++
The venue for the Round of 16 second leg is a very special one: The Puskas Arena, Hungary's national stadium, was completed in November 2019 at a cost of €610 million. It is built on the site of the former Nep Stadium that had a capacity of over 100,000. Design elements were taken from the historic venue and the facade of the new stadium with its 40 metre high concrete elements is reminiscent of the previous structure. The stadium was the venue for three group matches and one Round of 16 tie in Euro 2021. The 67,155 capacity Puskas Arena is almost sold out for the clash between Ferencváros and Bayer 04. Moreover: The arena in Budapest is the venue for the Europa League final…
+++16 March, 09.08 CET+++
Good morning from Budapest – it's matchday! As usual, the day starts with breakfast for the Werkself. That's followed by warm-up session at the team hotel.
+++15 March, 19.36 CET+++
The press conference with head coach Xabi Alonso and the captain Lukas Hradecky is over and the duo now head off to the team hotel. Statements from Alonso and Hradecky are HERE.
+++15 March, 17.43 CET+++
The Werkself have landed in Budapest. After a good flight, Xabi Alonso’s squad headed to the team hotel by bus. Coach Alonso and captain Lukas Hradecky will go to the Puskas Arena for the pre-match press conference. We will bring you the key statements later.
+++15 March, 15.23 CET+++
The Bayer 04 team have arrived at Cologne-Bonn Airport and will board the flight to Budapest straightaway. The flight takes around one hour and 45 minutes. We will report again after arrival.
+++15 March, 13.17 CET+++
Speaking at the final session at the BayArena, Simon Rolfes answered questions from the media representatives present. The sporting managing director said regarding the second leg in Budapest: "We looking forward to the game. We can expect an atmospheric arena and that is exactly the European competition feeling you work for over the whole year. We want to win the game and go through to the next round – that's our aim."
In spite of the 2-0 win in the first leg against the Hungarian record champions and record cup winners, the 41-year-old was keen to emphasise that "nothing is decided as yet. The position is okay but we saw in the first leg that Ferencváros are a good team and they had their chances. There will give 100% and we have too as well."
+++15 march, 11.45 CET+++
The 15 minutes of the final pre-match training session at the BayArena, which are open to members of the media, are over. Not on the pitch were Karim Bellarabi (ill) and Patrik Schick who is still struggling with a groin problem. The session now continues behind closed doors.
+++15 March, 10.43 CET+++
Today's schedule for the Werkself is as follows: The official pre-match training session at the BayArena starts at 11.30 CET. The squad then travel by coach to Cologne-Bonn airport for the departure of the team flight to Budapest. On arrival they will travel to the team hotel. The final official event for head coach Xabi Alonso and a selected Werkself player – this time captain Lukas Hradecky – will be at this evening's pre-match press conference at the Puskas Arena.
+++15 March, 09.57 CET+++
The Werkself route to the Round of 16 : Bayer 04 qualified for the knockout stage of the Europa League at the start of November as the third-placed team in Champions League Group B. The Black and Reds finished behind Porto and Club Brugge but ahead of Atletico Madrid. The first leg at home against AS Monaco ended in a 3-2 defeat and the same scoreline was repeated in the second leg – albeit in favour of the Werkself – to take the game to extra time. Bayer 04 won on penalties and the Round of 16 draw threw up Ferencváros as the opponents. The first leg against the Hungarian record champions and record cup winners at the BayArena ended in a 2-0 victory for the team under Xabi Alonso.
+++15 March, 09.04 CET+++
The Werkself head abroad for the next game: "Bayer 04 set off for the Hungarian capital this afternoon ahead of tomorrow's Round of 16 second leg against Ferencváros in the Europa League kicking off at 21.00 CET.
Rüdiger Vollborn has been at the club for 40 years, he holds the record number of Bundesliga appearances for the club (401) and is the only Bayer 04 player to have won both the UEFA Cup (1988) and the DFB Pokal (1993). And the Berliner stayed with the Werkself after ending his impressive playing career as he worked as a goalkeeping coach for the following nine years. Vollborn now works under the Bayer Cross as a fan liaison officer and club archivist. Since February 2021, the personalised Black and Red lexicon takes Werkself fans under the heading of 'Rudi recounts...' on a brief trip through the history of Bayer 04 every month…
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"In every ending lies a new beginning" is a well-known saying. This phrase has probably never been more apt at Bayer 04. After winning the Bundesliga in 2023/24 and finishing as runners-up in 2024/25, the summer was the most eventful ever in terms of transfers. Over ten players and the coach, including the coaching staff, left the club. A lot of the heroes of the double-winning side began a new chapter. It was the end of an era. And at the same time the beginning of a new, very exciting and promising chapter for Leverkusen. The Werkself welcomed more than a dozen new arrivals, including experienced title-winners and young talents, to build a new "foundation for a successful team capable of winning titles" under the Bayer Cross, as managing director sport Simon Rolfes put it. A new spirit, a new hunger, a new story was to be created. Bayer04.de looks back at the first few months of this story and the final act of the preseason.
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A record-breaking year ends for the Bayer 04 Women. Fourth place, 13 wins and 43 points in the 2024/25 campaign - the Werkself have never been so good in the Bundesliga. Coach Roberto Pätzold's team also had plenty of reasons to celebrate in the first half of the new Bundesliga season - although there were also a few disappointments. A look back at 2025 for the Bayer 04 Women’s team.
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