In spite of the icy cold, it was clear to see that the young and more experienced players were having fun in the warm-up routine for the four junior teams. Following the obligatory group photo, the U11 squad completed a rondo with Jonathan Tah and Ayman Azhil while the U10 players started with a practice match in restricted space under the guidance of Xabi Alonso's assistant coach Alberto Encinas working in tandem with Zidan Sertdemir.
Werkself skipper Lukas Hradecky, Joshua Eze and goalkeeping coach David Thiel ran the session with the U9 age group while central defender Edmond Tapsoba together with Alonso's assistant coach Sebastian Parrilla worked with the youngest junior players in the U8 squad.
For the Bayer 04 number one Lukas Hradecky, the goal he was protecting on the night was of different dimensions and significantly smaller than usual: The 6 foot 3 Finn wore a green bib in goal for the U9s, the second youngest Werkself team.
Hradecky again and again encouraged the young players during the practice match, giving them tips and advice – and he was full of praise for saves made by his opposite number.
Following the training session watched by numerous parents, the youngsters and senior players finished the evening with pizzas in the dressing rooms at the Kurtekotten Performance Centre. The U8 to U11 players also had the opportunity to put questions to Hradecky, Tah and Co as well as capturing the moment with photos and autographs.
Another group of players from the Werkself squad trained with the U12 to U15 teams last week. Here is the report on the first part of the Werkself visits to Kurtekotten.
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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Kasper Hjulmand has led the Werkself back to winning ways and is back in the knockout phase of the UEFA Champions League with Bayer 04 after the 3-0 win against Villarreal on Wednesday evening. In an interview with the Werkself magazine at the BayArena in the team meeting room, directly opposite the dressing room, he provided some special insights for the current issue, which was published in January. A conversation with the 53-year-old coach about values, attitudes and personal experiences as well as interests outside of football.
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The thrilling 3-1 win for Bayer 04 against Eintracht Frankfurt in the Hinrunde is a fond memory for Alejandro Grimaldo, with his brace from free kicks, and coach Kasper Hjulmand, who was in the dugout under the Cross for the first time. Now comes the return fixture in the metropolis on the River Main and after going out of the DFB Pokal and the Champions League, the full focus at Eintracht, currently managed by two interim coaches, is now on the Bundesliga. For their part, the Werkself will do everything in their power to continue the longest winning run against a Bundesliga club. The matchday news.
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Bayer 04 have ended Artem Stepanov’s loan deal at Nürnberg and agreed a new loan to Utrecht in the Netherlands. The Ukrainian striker did not play as much as hoped for at the Bundesliga 2 club and will now continue his development in the Eredivisie for the rest of 2025/26.
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The draw for the knockout play-offs of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League was made on Friday, 30 January and saw Bayer 04 paired with Olympiacos. It’s a reunion with the Greek side following the Werkself’s 2-0 loss in Athens on Matchday 7 of the league phase.
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