Leno played in goal for Germany against the four-time World Cup winners in his third full international. Benjamin Henrichs, who made his debut against San Marino, joined Jonathan Tah and Kevin Volland on the subs' bench.
This was the third time Germany have played Italy this year – the two previous matches were won by Joachim Löw and his players with the last victory on penalties in the Euro 2016 quarter-final tie in France.
The game at the Giuseppe Meazza Stadium developed into an entertaining encounter as both sides endeavoured to get on the front foot. The best chances for Germany in the first 45 minutes fell to Leon Goretzka (12'), Ilkay Gündogan (27', 32') and Thomas Müller (44'). The Italians had good chances through Rugani (13'), with a long-range effort that did not trouble Leno, and Immobile (25').
In the second half, Löw brought on Bayer 04 central defender Jonathan Tah in place of Mats Hummels and the Italians up the pressure. Kevin Volland came off the bench on the hour mark. The Werkself striker, making his tenth full international appearance, immediately brought life to the German attack. He had a goal chalked off due to an offside decision on 62 minutes and he put a shot just wide of the post on 73 minutes.
The Italians also had very good chances. Leno pulled off a great save on 71 minutes to keep out a shot from Bernardeschi. Shortly after that, luck was on his side as Belotti only hit the woodwork. "I think we can live with 0-0. We could have won with a bit more luck. Overall, I think we put on a great display," said Leno after the game
Draw for Austria, victory for Croatia
The friendly between Austria and Slovakia also ended goalless. Julian Baumgartlinger and Aleksandar Dragovic were in the starting eleven for the hosts. Ramazan Özcan did not play. Baumgartlinger came off at half-time while Dragovic played the full 90 minutes.
Tin Jedvaj played the full 90 minutes for Croatia and produced a convincing performance in their 3-0 win away to Northern Ireland.
Draw for Robbie Kruse and the Socceroos
Robbie Kruse and his Australia team-mates endured a tough shift on Tuesday afternoon. The Socceroos could only manage a 2-2 draw against Thailand in Bangkok. Kruse started and played the whole game. Australia are currently third in the Asia group the World Cup qualifiers but are just one point behind Japan and Saudi Arabia.
Mehmedi on course with Switzerland
Admir Mehmedi and Switzerland played on Sunday in the World Cup qualifiers where they picked up a fourth win in four games. The Swiss beat the Faroe Islands 2-0 and are currently on course to qualify for the World Cup as group leaders. Mehmedi, who hit the post on 78 minutes, played the full game. Switzerland now have a three-point lead over Euro 2016 winners Portugal who they beat 2-0 in the first group match.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen will have to manage without defender Nordi Mukiele and the Argentinian striker Alejo Sarco for the time being. Both players suffered muscle injuries in yesterday's Werkself training session.
Show moreTwo keepers, lots of questions: Werkself captain Lukas Hradecky and U19 goalkeeper Jesper Schlich visited the BarmeniaGothaer children’s press conference in partnership with the Bayer 04 Lions Club on Wednesday afternoon. The duo faced interesting and at times unusual questions from around 50 inquisitive young journalists in the press conference room at the BayArena.
Show moreThe video games manufacturer Electronic Arts (EA) in conjunction with the German Football League (DFL) have started the vote for the annual Bundesliga Team of the Season. Werkself fans now have the opportunity to put forward seven Bayer 04 players for the top eleven in the 2024/25 Bundesliga season. Florian Wirtz, Granit Xhaka, Jonathan Tah, Piero Hincapie, Patrik Schick, Jeremie Frimpong and Alejandro Grimaldo are in the vote. Voting ends on Sunday, 27 April (19:59 CEST).
Show moreA large number of sporting directors and officials from big clubs across Europe came to the BayArena on Tuesday for the second seminar in the UEFA Sporting Director Programme (SDP) in cooperation with the ECA.
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