No goals at Wembley as this time, in contrast to the legendary 1966 World Cup final, a rocket shot from Leroy Sané hit the underside of the bar but was rightly judged not to have crossed the line – in spite of the draw, the game between the two big European football nations proved to be entertaining encounter. Germany kept up their impressive record at England's home of football with a goalless draw that extends an unbeaten record since 1975. Bernd Leno did not play but Julian Brandt came on in the 86th minute to earn his 13th international cap. Joachim Löw's team are in action again in Cologne on Tuesday (20.45 CET) in the final match of the year against France.
Switzerland and Admir Mehmedi are on the verge of qualification for the 2018 World Cup in Russia. In the first leg of the play-off against Northern Ireland, the Swiss earned a deserved 1-0 win and they are in the driving seat ahead of Sundays decisive return match at the St Jakob Park stadium in Basel (18.00 CET). The former Wolfsburg player Ricardo Rodriguez, now playing for AC Milan, converted a penalty on 58 minutes for the only goal of the game. Mehmedi came on with three minutes to play for his 57th full international appearance.
Panos Retsos was also on the bench at the start of his play-off match. When the Bayer 04 pro was brought on by Michael Skibbe at the start of the second half, Greece were already 3-1 down against Croatia in Zagreb. The match ended in a 4-1 defeat for the Greeks who were unable to cope with the lively approach of the hosts and they made several errors in defence. Tin Jedvaj, currently recovering in Leverkusen, watched the match from afar and was able to enjoy the Croatian victory. The chances of Greece turning the tie round are slim ahead of Sunday's return match in Piraeus (20.45 CET).
Joel Pohjanpalo and Finland beat Estonia 3-0 in a friendly. 'Danger' played the full 90 minutes and provided the assist for the opening goal. On Sunday (14.30 CET), the two Bayer 04 youth players Sam Schreck and Atakan Akkaynak are set to play for the Germany U19s in Cyprus. Julian Baumgartlinger is likely to play for Austria in a friendly against Uruguay on Tuesday.
Following last weekend’s big game against Wolfsburg, Bayer 04 Women face another exciting challenge as they visit Hoffenheim to kick off Matchday 3 in the Google Pixel Bundesliga on Friday (kick-off: 18:30 CEST).
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Under the slogan ‘Holidays without War’, 60 children from war-torn Ukraine took part in the summer camp organised by the German-Ukrainian association Blau-Gelbes Kreuz in Leverkusen and the surrounding area in August. The children aged between 10 and 14 – many of whom have lost their parents in the war – come from the Ukrainian twin towns of Leverkusen, Cologne and Monheim am Rhein: Nikopol, Dnipro and Volodymyr. Bayer 04, Bayer AG and TSV Bayer 04 supported the camp to mark its 10th anniversary, enabling even more children and young people than in previous years to spend a few carefree days’ holiday away from the war in the Rhineland.
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Midfielder Ruby Grant is leaving Bayer 04 Leverkusen and joining Portuguese runners-up Sporting CP a year before her contract expires. The 24-year-old has been at the Werkself since January 2025.
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Bayer 04 have loaned Brazilian full-back Arthur to Bundesliga side Werder Bremen for one year. Arthur Augusto de Matos Soares – the full name of the right-back – has a contract with Leverkusen until 30 June 2031. At Werder, the 23-year-old is expected to make an impact and help the long-established club further consolidate their position in the Bundesliga.
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