"I really feel at home here straightaway, the facilities are brilliant. The players have great energy and have invested a lot of passion on the pitch," said Pätzold on his first day of coaching: "The atmosphere was very positive and I have a good feeling that our new coaching team will work well together. I'll be happy if it carries on like that over the next few days." The 44-year-old coach was joined by the new assistant Friederike Mehring as well as the second assistant Remzi Kahraman, up to now an individual coach with the Bayer 04 Women..
Some members of the squad were absent: Sylwia Matysik and Lilla Turányi, who were in action with their national sides after the end of the season, are still on holiday. Melissa Friedrich (torn ankle ligament), Delice Boboy (exams), Anne Moll (Wisdom tooth operation), Estrella Merino Gonzalez (injured) and Charlotte Voll (shoulder operation) also missed the first training session.
Katharina Piljić, the first summer signing for the Leverkusen women's team, made her first outing on the training ground. The midfielder from SGS Essen joined the training session alongside Louisa Remien (keeper), Ida Daedelow, Nina Hainke, Chiara Kaiser, Jana Lindner and Sena Fukumoto from the Bayer 04 youth ranks. The sextet have a chance to make a name for themselves over the coming weeks.
After a warm-up routine and a couple of passing drills in restricted space, Pätzold started off by having his new team work with the ball. The second part of the session followed with a game on half the pitch.
The first friendly is on Saturday 29 June against second division FSV Gütersloh (Kick-off: 12.00 CEST, Kurtekotten Performance Centre). After two more friendlies and a two-week break there will be a training camp in Katowice from 31 July to 5 August. That will be followed by another three friendlies against European opponents. The 2024/25 Bundesliga season begins at the end of August. The Werkself are in action in the second round of the DFB Pokal a week later.
The summer agenda for the Women's team can be found HERE.
In mid-August, the Werkself will set off on a four-day trip to England to play their final two friendly matches of the 2026/27 pre-season against Premier League clubs Nottingham Forest and Newcastle United. The match in Nottingham against the Tricky Trees is on Wednesday 12 August at 20:45 CEST (19:45 BST) at the City Ground. The game against the Magpies in Newcastle is on Saturday 15 August at 16:00 CEST (15:00 BST) at the atmospheric St James’ Park. Details on ticket sales for both matches.
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Black and Red talent development at the highest level – even off the pitch: Apprentices Jule Suermann, Leandra Bellia and Julia Niederheide have successfully completed their two- or three-year apprenticeships at the club. Bayer 04 honoured the trio at the BayArena on Tuesday.
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Following the summer break, most of the players are back in Leverkusen. While two Bayer 04 first-team players are still in action at the World Cup, the players present officially kicked off the new season with fitness assessments. At the Werkstatt, the Bayer 04 rehabilitation and training centre, Robert Andrich, Edmond Tapsoba and the rest of the squad worked up quite a sweat in the sweltering summer heat. New signings Afonso Moreira and Kennet Eichhorn also successfully completed the day’s sessions alongside their new team-mates.
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The Werkself return tomorrow, Tuesday 14 July (from 11:00 CEST at the BayArena; live stream on bayer04.de, the Bayer 04 app and YouTube), with new head coach Carles Martínez leading his first training session as part of the Bayer 04 set-up. His coaching team comprises a mix of new and long-standing colleagues.
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The FIFA World Cup 2026 in the USA, Canada and Mexico is underway. A total of eight Leverkusen players are taking part in the 23rd World Cup, with 48 teams in the tournament for the first time. Bayer04.de brings you all the latest from Werkself players at the World Cup.
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