Neymar, who opened the scoring on 27 minutes, converted the winning spot-kick after the keeper Weverton saved the previous penalty from Nils Petersen. Max Meyer levelled at 1-1 just before the hour mark. “It’s not a bitter blow. We knew it could end in penalties. We had the chance to win the game before that. Before the penalties I told the lads they’d done something outstanding. We leave here as winners not losers,” said coach Trainer Horst Hrubesch after his last match in charge for Germany: “Of course, I did want a gold medal as did the lads but I’m still happy. We spent the last four days in the Olympic Village and that was a fantastic experience.”
Brandt strikes first
Julian Brandt provided the first excitement in an incredibly intensive encounter when he rifled a shot against the bar from the edge of the box on 11 minutes. Brazil had more luck when Neymar hit a free kick just under the bar to give Brazil the lead on 27 minutes. The bar intervened again to frustrate a shot from Meyer (31’) and a header from Sven Bender (35’) – three times against the goal frame is a lot of woodwork.
Bender goes off
The deserved equaliser came after the restart: Julian Brandt put Jeremy Toljan through on the right and his cross was met by Meyer who turned it into the bottom corner to level at 1-1 on 59 minutes. A setback followed as the battler Lars Bender had to go off injured after putting in an heroic defensive run to keep out Renato Augusto on 65 minutes.
It was a no-holds barred encounter all the way with Brandt having another effort on goal in extra time but his impressive shot flew just over the target on 97 minutes. Brandt converted his penalty in the shoot-out as the third German player up with a shot into the right corner. The two sides remained inseparable until Weverton saved from Petersen and Neymar took the roof off the Maracana with the winning penalty.
A sensational effort by Germany ended in silver – and the recognition that a team put together late on could have a fantastic tournament. Well done, Lars and Julian.
The penultimate Bundesliga matchday of the calendar year marks the end of an eventful first half of the season for the Bayer 04 Women. After seven wins, one draw and four defeats from the first twelve games of the season, coach Roberto Pätzold's team can go above Werder Bremen in the table with a win on Friday, 12 December (kick-off: 18:30 CET).
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The third showdown in the VBL Club Championship 2025/26 kicks off for the Leverkusen eSports team this Thursday, 11 December (live on the B04eSports Twitch channel from 19:00 CET). In the online preliminary round, the Black and Red will once again take on six previously drawn opponents for a place in the Top 16 and the associated entry into the offline knockout round, which will take place at this third showdown on 19 December in Cologne. Showdown One winners Bayer 04 will face FC St. Pauli, who won the second showdown last month, among others. The lowdown on first three opponents in this online preliminary round.
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Alejandro Grimaldo, of course! With his late equaliser (88') in the Champions League clash against Newcastle United, the Spaniard rescued a point for the Werkself, who took the lead through an own goal by Newcastle's Bruno Guimaraes (13') but went with two goals for the visitors scored by Anthony Gordon (51') and Lewis Miley (74'). It was the third draw for Bayer 04 in the current 2025/26 campaign on matchday 6 in the UCL league phase.
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The Werkself will be looking to continue their run in the Champions League against Newcastle United on Wednesday, 10 December (kick-off: 21:00 CET). The two victories without conceding a goal at Benfica (1:0) and Manchester City (2-0) will hopefully be followed by a win at home at the BayArena. Against the English side, who have a player with a Black and Red past in their ranks, the way to victory could be through efficiency in attack and quick transitional play. The latter in particular has recently caused the Magpies problems away from home on the European stage. Fans can also get the stylish matchday sticker for their Sound of Dreams tour pass at the Bayer 04 Fanwelt. The matchday news.
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For the first time ever, Bayer 04 have reached the knockout phase of the UEFA Youth League. At the end of the league phase, the Leverkusen U19s secured a 2-1 home win against Newcastle United on Wednesday, 10 December. Montrell Culbreath scored before half-time and Ferdinand Pohl doubled the lead after the restart in the clash with the English side. The UCL youth competition continues at the beginning of February with the Round of 32, which will be played away from home without a second leg.
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