It is not only the Werkself Women who have seen major changes with the introduction of eight new signings in the summer. On the banks of the River Main, the purely women’s football club FFC Frankfurt has now come under the umbrella of Eintracht Frankfurt and the fusion of the two clubs is evident in the Bundesliga table of the recently started season. “They strengthened last year and have now done so again,” said head coach Achim Feifel who ranks the next opponents amongst the top four in the league.
The 56-year-old wants his team to carry on against Eintracht where they left off last Sunday in the second half against double winners Wolfsburg (final score 0-4). “Aggressive pressing all over the pitch and a compact display,” are the key components to come out on top against Frankfurt according to Feifel.
Summer signing Sylwia Matysik is not available to the head coach on Wednesday due to injury. After recent knocks, Jessica Wich and Nina Brüggemann returned for the final pre-match training session with the fifth placed team on Tuesday. A decision on whether the skipper and her vice captain can play will be made before setting off for Frankfurt on Wednesday morning.
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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