Germany's goals in Sinsheim were scored by the former Bayer 04 player Kai Havertz on 36 minutes with a header from a corner and Timo Werner from an Ilkay Gündogan free kick just before half-time (45+ 1'). In spite of Thomas Müller missing a penalty late on, the 2-0 scoreline was never threatened. Tah was in the starting line-up in his 15th international appearance and he played the full 90 minutes.
That was the eighth victory in succession for Germany and coach Hansi Flick remains unbeaten on the international stage. Tah and Co. are back in action on Tuesday 29 March with a friendly against the Netherlands. The Oranje also started with a win with a 4-2 victory over Denmark. The match at the Johan Cruijff Arena in Amsterdam kicks off at 20.45 CEST.
Mitchel Bakker played for the Netherlands U21s in a Euros qualifier against Bulgaria on Friday 25 March. The two teams drew 0-0 after 96 minutes. Bakker played on the left side of the back four from the start and he went the full distance. The Netherlands are in second place in Group E of the U21 European Championships qualifiers after six matches.
The Dutch team are back in action on Tuesday. The team under head coach Erwin van der Looi entertain Switzerland. The current league leaders in Group E clocked up a 5-1 win against Wales.
Familiar faces: Last Friday's friendly between France and the Ivory Coast saw the two Werkself players Moussa Diaby and Odilon Kossounou on opposite sides. The Équipe de France registered a 2-1 win against the Ivorians with a late winner coming from a Tchouameni header (90+3'). Diaby did not appear for Les Bleus. Kossounou came on as a substitute on 68 minutes.
Diaby and Co. have another friendly on Tuesday at home to South Africa (kick-off: 21.15 CEST). Kossounou and the Ivory Coast face England in a friendly on Tuesday (kick-off: 20.45 CEST).
After the Spain U21s with Iker Bravo started the qualifiers for the U 17 European Championships with a 4-1 win against Bosnia-Herzegovina, there was a big match against Belgium on Saturday 26 March. Belgium went into the game on the back of an overwhelming 8-1 win against Estonia. Bravo and Co. came out on top of the clash between the two top teams in Group D with a 1-0 win against the Belgians. The Leverkusen striker did not feature.
The final match against Estonia is on Tuesday. The kick-off is at 15.00 CEST with the match being played in the east of Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Exequiel Palacios was able to enjoy is a convincing 3-0 victory for his Argentinian teammates against Venezuela but he did not come on. The Albiceleste had already qualified for the World Cup finals before the game. And Werkself captain Lukas Hradecky was also on the sidelines in Finland's 1-1 draw in a friendly against Iceland.
Remaining international fixtures:
Jonathan Tah (Germany):
Tuesday 29 March: Netherlands vs Germany (Friendly)
Moussa Diaby (France):
Tuesday 29 March: France vs South Africa (Friendly)
Lukas Hradecky (Finland):
Tuesday 29 March: Finland vs Slovakia (Friendly)
Exequiel Palacios (Argentina):
Wednesday 30 March: Ecuador vs Argentina (World Cup qualifier)
Charles Aránguiz (Chile):
Wednesday 30 March: Chile vs Uruguay (World Cup qualifier)
Piero Hincapie (Ecuador):
Wednesday 30 March: Ecuador vs Argentina (World Cup qualifier)
Odilon Kossounou (Ivory Coast):
Tuesday 29 March: England vs Ivory Coast (Friendly)
Edmond Tapsoba (Burkina Faso):
Tuesday 29 March: Belgium vs Burkina Faso (Friendly)
Sardar Azmoun (Iran):
Tuesday 29 March: Iran vs Lebanon (World Cup qualifier)
Mitchel Bakker (Netherlands U21):
Tuesday 29 March: Netherlands U21 vs Switzerland U21 (Euros qualifier)
Iker Bravo (Spain U17):
Tuesday 29 March: Estonia U17 vs Spain U17 (Euros qualifier)
This special event showed once again how strong Bayer 04 are as a team: As part of ‘BarmeniaGothaer gives joy’, the Werkself players Edmond Tapsoba, Ibrahim Maza and Christian Kofane supported the sale of individually designed T-shirts for a good cause at the Fanwelt on Thursday. Several hundred fans came to take part in the charity campaign. Leverkusen's main sponsor BarmeniaGothaer donated the proceeds to the Fondation Edmond Tapsoba, which helps people in Tapsoba's home country of Burkina Faso in their challenging everyday lives.
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With three games to play before the end of the season, the Bayer 04 Women can break one record and equal another at SGS Essen. After three wins on the bounce, coach Roberto Pätzold's team are aiming to maintain the chance of third place in Sunday’s away game (14:00 CEST, Stadion an der Hafenstraße).
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Rüdiger Vollborn has been at the club for 40 years, he holds the record number of Bundesliga appearances for the club (401) and is the only Bayer 04 player to have won both the UEFA Cup (1988) and the DFB Pokal (1993). And the Berliner stayed with the Werkself after ending his impressive playing career as he worked as a goalkeeping coach for the following nine years. Vollborn now works under the Bayer Cross as a fan liaison officer and club archivist. Since February 2021, the personalised Black and Red lexicon takes Werkself fans under the heading of 'Rudi recounts...' on a brief trip through the history of Bayer 04 every month…
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From Ouagadougou to Leverkusen – and back: in March, Bayer 04 travelled with Edmond Tapsoba for a special project in his homeland Burkina Faso. The country where his roots and heart lie. The country where he’s more than a world-class defender: a symbol of hope and a role model for an entire generation. The result is a 45-minute documentary about Tapsoba’s long journey from Africa via Portugal to Leverkusen, which offers extraordinary, one-off and emotional insights.
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Edmond Tapsoba has signed an early extension to his contract with Bayer 04 Leverkusen. With two years left on his current deal, the 27-year-old Burkina Faso international has extended his contract until 30 June 2031. The centre-back joined as a young talent from Portuguese top-flight club Vitoria Guimaraes at the start of 2020.
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