Finland with goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky played Bosnia and Herzegovina on the first matchday in Group 3 of the Nations League League B. In the capital Helsinki, star striker Teemu Pukki opened the scoring from the penalty spot just before half-time, Bosnia's Smail Prevljak equalised in added time in the second half with the game ending in a 1-1 draw.
The North European side now play the other group opponents Montenegro (7 June) and Romania (11 June); and the return match against Bosnia-Herzegovina is also in the current run of international fixtures (14 June).
Germany started the new season in the Nations League with an absolute classic fixture: The team under coach Hansi Flick faced Italy in Bergamo. The game remained goalless for a long time. Lorenzo Pellegrini (AS Roma) gave the Squadra Azzura the lead on 70 minutes but Bayern Munich's Joshua Kimmich levelled just three minutes later. The big match ended in a draw after 90 minutes with Werkself defender Jonathan Tah watching the game from the bench.
Germany have the next crunch encounter on Tuesday night (7 June): England are the visitors in Munich. That is followed by matches against Hungary (11 June) and Italy again on 14 June.
The next games involving Black and Red players are for Argentina with Exequiel Palacios and Ecuador with Piero Hincapie. Pala and Co. play a friendly against Estonia tonight (Sunday) with the kick off at 20.00 CEST in the Spanish city of Pamplona. Ecuador are also set to play a friendly: They face Mexico overnight from Sunday to Monday with the kick off at 01.30 CEST.
REMAINING INTERNATIONAL FIXTURES:
Jonathan Tah – Germany
7 June, 20:45 CEST: Germany vs England (UEFA Nations League)
11 June, 20.45 CEST: Hungary vs Germany (UEFA Nations League)
14 June, 20.45 CEST: Germany vs Italy (UEFA Nations League)
Lukas Hradecky – Finland
7 June, 18.00 CEST: Finland vs Montenegro (UEFA Nations League)
11 June, 20.45 CEST: Romania vs Finland (UEFA Nations League)
14 June, 20.45 CEST: Bosnia & Herzegovina vs Finland (UEFA Nations League)
Moussa Diaby – France
6 June, 20.45 CEST: Croatia vs France (UEFA Nations League)
10 June, 20.45 CEST: Austria vs France (UEFA Nations League)
13 June, 20.45 CEST: France vs Croatia (UEFA Nations League)
Exequiel Palacios – Argentina
5 June, 20.00 CEST: Argentina vs Estonia (Friendly)
Piero Hincapie – Ecuador
6 June, 01.30 CEST: Mexico vs Ecuador (Friendly)
12 June, 23.30 CEST: Ecuador vs Cape Verde (Friendly)
Edmond Tapsoba – Burkina Faso
7 June, 15.00 CEST: Eswatini vs Burkina Faso (AFCON qualifier)
Odilon Kossounou – Ivory Coast
9 June, 21.00 CEST: Lesotho vs Ivory Coast (AFCON qualifier)
Mitchel Bakker – Netherlands U21
7 June, 20.00 CEST: Netherlands U21 vs Gibraltar U21 (Euro qualifier)
11 June, 18.00 CEST: Wales U21 vs Netherlands U21 (Euro qualifier)
In glorious sunshine and temperatures of around 30 degrees Celsius, the Bayer 04 Women have begun their preparations for the new season. With a relaxed first session at the Kurtekotten training centre, coach Roberto Pätzold’s team became the first Bundesliga side to resume training after a 37-day break.
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Black and Red stand out. Under the slogan ‘Diversity under the Cross’, Bayer 04 took part in Pride on the Rhine at the weekend alongside the queer fan club “Bayer 04 Junxx”. The club mascot, Brian the Lion, and several members of staff were also in attendance, championing diversity and solidarity.
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Centre-back Melissa Friedrich is set to remain at Bayer 04 for another year. The longest-serving player in the squad, who joined the club in 2016, has extended her contract to 2027.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen have signed Portugal U21 international Afonso Moreira. The 21-year-old winger joins the club from French top-flight side Olympique Lyon on a contract to 30 June 2031. In France last year, the left-winger made 37 appearances in Ligue 1, the Coupe de France and the UEFA Europa League, scoring a total of eight goals and providing eleven assists.
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