
One of the first people to contact Florian Wirtz by phone was Hansi Flick. The Germany coach said after talking to the four-time international: "Florian Wirtz is one of the biggest talents German football has produced in recent years. Therefore, we were all shocked when we heard about the torn cruciate," said the 57-year-old. "I've tried to comfort him. He is still young and he will come back at least as strong, I'm convinced of that. He will receive our full support."
The list of other teammates and former Leverkusen players as well as from Germany wishing Wirtz a speedy recovery is long. FC Köln head coach Steffen Baumgart said after the game: "Of course, I wish Florian Wirtz well. I hope he's soon back on his feet. It was a shock for all of us." At the same time, he had clear words for the fans who made derisive comments when the former FC Köln youth player was carried off the pitch. "That's out of order. There's nothing more to say about it."
Everybody at Bayer 04 is crossing their fingers: Come back stronger, Flo!












Decision made: Germany will submit a bid to the IOC (International Olympic Committee) to host the 2036, 2040 or 2044 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Munich. The representatives of the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) voted for Munich over Cologne-Rhine-Ruhr at their extraordinary meeting in Baden-Baden on Saturday 26 September. Berlin had already withdrawn from the vote a few days earlier.
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Former Werkself star Michael Ballack, who won the German Footballer of the Year award in 2002 while playing in Leverkusen, celebrates his 50th birthday on Saturday. Bayer 04 sends him its best wishes!
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A challenging start to what will hopefully be a long journey: The Bayer 04 women’s team kick off their new DFB Pokal campaign on Sunday (14:00 CEST) against second-division leaders FC Viktoria Berlin. Coach Roberto Pätzold expects stiff resistance in the capital – and is counting on his team’s strong away form in the Bundesliga so far this term.
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Attention Werkself fans: In addition to tickets for the floodlit home match against Werder Bremen, tickets are now also available for the Bayer 04 women’s team’s two subsequent fixtures against Eintracht Frankfurt and Hamburger SV at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium. Both matches in the Google Pixel Women’s Bundesliga will take place at family-friendly kick-off times on Saturday afternoons. Here is the latest information on matchday ticket sales.
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