Joachim Löw announced the day before the match that Bernd Leno was his choice in goal, and that meant the 25-year-old Werkself keeper earned his sixth international cap in Kaiserslautern. Julian Brandt was also a starter against Azerbaijan for his twelfth full international appearance for Germany. A cross from Brandt led to a corner on nine minutes, which was skilfully converted with a backheel by Schalke's Leon Goretzka to give Germany an early lead. Shortly after Sandro Wagner hit the post, the visitors from Azerbaijan sprang a surprise with Ramil Sheydaev levelling the scores on 34 minutes with a shot to the near post that beat Leno.
Germany upped their game significantly after the restart – with Brandt making a solid contribution. The 21-year-old went very close twice in succession on 47 minutes before providing a pinpoint cross for Wagner to put Germany back in front with a header on 54 minutes. That broke the visitors' resistance with Antonio Rüdiger (64'), Goretzka (66') and Emre Can (80') scoring to make it 5-1.
Like Germany, Switzerland also have a perfect record in Group B. The Swiss team clocked up a comfortable 5-2 victory over Hungary at St. Jakob Park in Basel on Saturday for the ninth win in nine games – but they are not certain of qualifying for the World Cup finals. Their last group match on Tuesday (20.45 CET) in Lisbon against Portugal will decide their fate. A draw would be enough for Switzerland to secure a place in Russia next summer as they are three points ahead of the European Champions at the moment. Admir Mehmedi did not play against Hungary but is certainly an option for Vladimir Petkovic's team in the nail-biting finale in the race for top spot.
The Greek team had an outstanding evening in Group H. The side coached by Michael Skibbe, with Panos Retsos coming off the bench on 69 minutes to earn his second full international cap, came from behind to beat Cyprus 2-1 in Nicosia and they also profited from the previous second-placed team Bosnia losing 4-3 against leaders Belgium. Greece now have a two-point lead in second place in the race for a play-off slot and look certain to progress with the final home game on Tuesday against the as yet pointless Gibraltar.
Fans at the BayArena got to enjoy a spectacle on Wednesday as the Werkself came from behind to beat Nürnberg 5-2 in the DFB Pokal. Now with the sixth home game of the season, can Bayer 04 maintain their perfect record in Leverkusen as VfB Stuttgart come to town in the Bundesliga on Saturday (15:30 CET)? The visitors have had issues domestically this term, sitting in 15th place, although they have had much better results in the UEFA Champions League. Here’s all you need to know ahead of the Matchday 8 encounter…
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Three days after the spectacular comeback in the DFB Pokal tie against FC Nürnberg (5–2), the Werkself face their next challenge in the Bundesliga. On Saturday, 31 October (kick-off: 15:30 CET), Bayer 04 host VfB Stuttgart, currently 15th in the table, at the BayArena. Ahead of the match, Carles Martínez spoke, amongst other things, about important factors in preparing for this next game given a tight fixture list.
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Despite VfB Stuttgart performing well in the Champions League, they are facing a difficult spell early on in the Bundesliga. Three days after their last-minute victory in the DFB Pokal at SC Paderborn 07, the Swabians can now take to the pitch at the BayArena with greater confidence on Saturday, 31 October (kick-off: 15:30 CET). The lowdown on our next opponents.
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A special afternoon at the Bayer 04 Football Academy autumn camp: At the Liga 20 indoor football centre, in the shadow of the BayArena, two Werkself women’s team players led a training session. Loreen Bender and Selina Ostermeier not only offered the young players advice and support, but also got stuck in themselves.
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