The organisers of the Bayer 04 Football School chose a very special location for the Q&A session with the successful Werkself duo: the dugouts in the BayArena. There, Victor Boniface and Odilon Kossounou answered questions such as who has been their most challenging opponent to date: Boniface chose his former Europa League opponent and current teammate Jonathan Tah, Kossounou the world-class centre-forward Erling Haaland (Manchester City).
Another secret that has now been revealed: the two African internationals' favourite animals are dogs (Boniface) and lions (Kossounou). And when asked about their best friends in the team, both first counted off numerous names, only to then realise that every teammate, without exception, has become a good friend. Boniface and Kossounou rounded things off with some important tips on how to make the step into professional football - Boniface: "Always believe in yourself and work on your strengths and weaknesses every day."
And of course, the children at the Football School also took a look ahead to the EURO 2024 final on Sunday. "Who do you fancy?" The clear answer from the Leverkusen duo: Spain - and therefore also teammate Alejandro Grimaldo.
In the morning, Boniface and Kossounou worked alongside Jonas Hofmann and U19 player Francis Onyeka on the training pitch at the BayArena. After a few rounds of football tennis inside the stadium, they took to the pitch under the guidance of assistant coach Sebastian Parrilla and athletics coach Markus Müller.
There, the quartet completed athletics drills and exercises with the ball at their feet, putting them in the right frame of mind for the start of pre-season on Sunday (performance diagnostics) and Monday (training). They then rounded things off with a "welcome back" selfie.
The majority of the Werkself squad will return for performance diagnostics on Sunday, 14 July, with the first team training session scheduled for the following day. The session in front of the BayArena gates is scheduled to start at 11:00 CEST and is accessible to Bayer 04 fans. Click HERE for the dates of the German double winners' other open training sessions that have already been finalised.
New signing Miguel Gutiérrez arrives in Leverkusen having won the Champions League, the Spanish league title and an Olympic gold medal. However, the 25-year-old Spaniard, signed from Napoli, is looking to the future – he wants to write the next chapter of success with the Werkself. Bayer04.de takes a closer look at the skilful, attack-minded left-back, who will wear the number 3 jersey.
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The Werkself's training camp in Weimarer Land all in one place: in our daily blog you'll find all the insights and updates from the day. Day three (Tuesday 4 August) begins with a thorough open session on the pitch. After lunch, some players have media engagements at the team hotel, and then the team come together for a barbecue in the evening.
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Nine matches against teams from nine countries, two penalty shoot-outs won, and encounters that went far beyond football: As with last year, the Inklusionswerkself enjoyed an extraordinary week at the Genuine Cup 2026 in Houston, USA, and made memories that will last a lifetime. This year, the Leverkusen side took part as Germany’s official representatives and, accordingly, took to the pitch in Germany kit. Together with 53 teams from 53 nations, the Black and Reds once again sent a powerful message of inclusion and participation – and also impressed on the pitch by winning their group.
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The Werkself training camp in the Weimarer Land all in one place: in our daily blog, you’ll find all the insights and updates from the day. The programme for day two (Monday, 3 August) centres on two training sessions – one in the morning (open to the public) and one in the early evening (behind closed doors) – at the nearby training grounds. In the afternoon, fans can look forward to a big fan meet-up with club legend Paulo Sergio at Schloss Blankenhain.
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