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.
Werkself-TV shows the highlights of Bayer 04 Women's 0-2 loss at 1. FC Nürnberg on Matchday 8 of the 2026/27 Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga.
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After nine points from their first three away matches of the 2026/27 season, the Bayer 04 Women suffered their first away defeat on Sunday afternoon. The 2-0 defeat away to FC Nürnberg, who were winless before today, represented a setback for coach Roberto Pätzold’s team in the race for the top spots in the Google Pixel Women’s Bundesliga. Fany Pronietz scored both goals (62’, 85’) for the home side.
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After six consecutive wins, the Werkself have hit a rough patch: Bayer 04 lost 3-0 away to TSG Hoffenheim. Andrej Kramaric put the hosts ahead from the penalty spot (79'), with Alexander Prass and Max Moerstedt adding to the tally shortly before full-time (89’/90+5’). After ten matches under Carles Martínez, with the Black and Reds always scoring at least twice, Leverkusen failed to find the net for the first time.
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The Werkself still have a score to settle with TSG Hoffenheim: Bayer 04 lost both matches against the Kraichgau side last term – after the Black and Reds had won all the previous five encounters. Leverkusen are currently on a roll and looking to kick off a new winning streak against TSG in Sinsheim on Sunday 25 October (kick-off: 15:30 CET), and Patrik Schick is keen to continue his current run of form. However, it will not be easy, as coach Christian Ilzer’s team have also gained confidence recently. Today’s matchday news.
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