The inaugural match for the Germany U23 team ended in victory under captain Kristin Kögel: Germany beat France 3-0 in a U23 international at the DFB Campus in Frankfurt. The skipper Kögel and Katharina Piljic played the full game. For the second friendly against the Italy U23 team, coach Kathrin Peter included another Leverkusen player in Julia Mickenhagen. The Germany U23 team drew 2-2 with Italy in Florence. Kögel did not play, Piljic (46’) and Mickenhagen (82’) came on as substitutes in the second half.
For Lilla Turanyi and Hungary, the quest for a place at the European Championship finals in Switzerland next summer is over. In the first round of the Euro qualifier play-offs, they lost 1-0 in Budapest and the return match in Edinburgh ended in a 4-0 defeat. Defender Turanyi played the full 90 minutes in both games.
The international break was a little more successful for Denmark with Cornelia Kramer in the squad. The striker did not play in Denmark's 5-0 win against South Africa but made an astonishing international debut in the friendly against the Netherlands in Esbjerg four days later: Kramer came off the bench on 85 minutes and scored her first international goal two minutes later. Unfortunately, the 21-year-old was unable to prevent Denmark losing 2-1.
Her Leverkusen teammate Karolina Lea Vilhjalmsdottir clocked up the most air miles with Iceland in two friendlies against the USA. Iceland lost both games 3-1. The first match against the USA team in Austin saw Vilhjalmsdottir come on as a substitute on 85 minutes. The 23-year-old started in the second friendly in Nashville and gave Iceland the lead with a goal from a corner on 31 minutes.
Emilie Bragstad played one friendly with her national team. The defender was on the winning side with the Norway U23 team in a 3-0 victory against the Portugal U23s. Bragstad played the whole game in Melgaco in Portugal. The Germany U19 squad was also in Portugal for a DFB training camp with the two Bayer 04 Women Delice Boboy and Estrella Merino Gonzalez called up. The two Leverkusen forwards played from the start in a 2-1 defeat against Norway. In the second friendly against the Netherlands U19 side, the team coached by Michael Urbansky drew 2-2 after being 2-0 down. Merino Gonzalez and Boboy were again in the starting line-up.
The Leverkusen eSports team played the remaining three of the six matches in the online preliminary round of the fourth showdown in the VBL Club Championship 2025/26. RB Leipzig and SC Freiburg were among the teams with the highest goal threat, including two World Cup participants in their ranks. Although the #B04eSports players were defeated in the matches overall, nine points from the first three games last week were enough for Leverkusen to advance to the offline round in Berlin on 2 February.
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A decisive showdown awaits: The Werkself are aiming to progress to the play-off round of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League with a home win against Villarreal CF on the eighth and final matchday of the league phase. Ahead of the match on Wednesday, 28 January (kick-off: 21:00 CET), coach Kasper Hjulmand spoke about the importance of the game, the possible return of Edmond Tapsoba and a statement from new signing Jonas Omlin in an exclusive interview with Werkself TV. Lucas Vázquez, for his part, spoke about his role on and off the pitch as well as tomorrow’s opponents, who he often faced in Spain with Real Madrid.
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For Villarreal CF, the match at Bayer 04 on Wednesday, 28 January (kick-off: 21:00 CET), will be their last appearance on the European stage this season. The Spanish side, currently fourth in La Liga, are still without a win in the UEFA Champions League and, with just one point from their seven games so far, have no chance of making the play-offs. The 2021 Europa League winners can therefore play without any pressure at the BayArena and will be looking to bow out of the competition with a good performance. The lowdown on our next opponents.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen will to have manage without forward Eliesse Ben Seghir. The Morocco international suffered a ligament injury in his left ankle before the AFCON final defeat against Senegal (0-1 a.e.t.).
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The VBL Club Championship 2025/26 continues. Tonight, 27 January (live on Twitch and on the Bayer 04 app from 18:00 CET), the Leverkusen eSports team will play the remaining three matches in the online preliminary round of Showdown Four. They are up against FC Kaiserslautern, SC Freiburg and the current club champions and Showdown Three winners RB Leipzig, with whom Bayer 04, club runners-up and Showdown One winners, shared some memorable moments, especially last year. The lowdown on our next opponents.
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