
With team-mate Wendell looking on, the Werkself number 20 went the full distance in midfield against Ecuador in the second group match in Salvador and once again he came up with the goods as in the first group match against Japan (4-0): The 30-year-old took the corner for the opening goal from José Fuenzalida (CSD Colo-Colo) and he laid on the winner at 2-1 for Alexis Sánches (Manchester United) with a cross from the right. The victory sees Chile hold on to top spot in Group C and they are through to the quarter-finals ahead of the last group match against Uruguay early on Tuesday (25 June, 01.00 CET).
Leon Bailey and his Jamaican team-mates also remain unbeaten at the Gold Cup (15 June to 7 July in the USA, Costa Rica and Jamaica) – the Reggae Boyz could only manage a goalless draw against second-placed El Salvador but they remain top of Group C ahead of their final group match thanks to a better goal difference. In an evenly balanced encounter, with Jamaica having the better chances, Bailey played the full 90 minutes on the right wing. The 0-0 draw gives Jamaica the chance to go through to the quarter-finals of the competition in the game against the one-points worse off Curaçao in third place on Wednesday (26 June, 02.00 CET).
The Bayer 04 youth player Marc Lamti starts the Africa Cup (21 June to 19 July) on Monday (19.00 CET) with the competition held in Egypt this year. The Eagles of Carthage play 2006 World Cup participants Angola in the first match in Group E.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen will have to manage without centre-back Edmond Tapsoba in the coming weeks. The Burkina Faso international returned to the Werkself from the Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco with a muscle injury.
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The Werkself are away to Hamburg SV at the end of the Hinrunde in the 2025/26 Bundesliga campaign. The match at the newly promoted club is on Tuesday night, 13 January (kick-off: 20:30 CET). Ahead of the first encounter with HSV since 2018, Kasper Hjulmand spoke about the strengths of the opponents, lessons learnt from the home defeat against VfB Stuttgart and provided a squad update.
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In Germany, the temperatures are currently around zero, leaving even professional footballers freezing - but not the Bayer 04 Women. Roberto Pätzold's team have fled the cold to the south and are preparing for the second half of the season at a training camp in the Algarve, almost 2,000 kilometres away from home as the crow flies. The Leverkusen squad landed in Faro on Saturday morning and have already completed the first three training sessions over the weekend.
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It was a disappointing Saturday night. The Werkself lost 4-1 to VfB Stuttgart to start the new year on Bundesliga matchday 16 in 2025/26, a result that left both players and fans disappointed. "We played without any passion," said Alejandro Grimaldo honestly afterwards. Teammate Jarell Quansah was even more self-critical, emphasising: "We were miles off it in the first half. You can't put in a performance like that, especially in front of our own fans and I can only apologise to them, to be honest." Read on for the reaction, facts and stats from the clash with VfB Stuttgart in the Werkself review.
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