After three 1-1 draws in succession against Italy, England and Hungary, Germany yesterday (14 May) secured the first win in the current UEFA Nations League campaign. Goals from Joshua Kimmich, Ilkay Gündogan, Thomas Müller and a Timo Werner brace paved the way to a 5-2 win against European champions Italy. Bayer 04 defender Jonathan Tah came on as a late sub to replace Niklas Süle in the centre of defence.
The team under coach Hansi Flick are currently second in Group 3 in League A with six points from four games. Hungary lead the table with one point more, Italy (five) and England (two) follow in third and fourth places. The final group matches in the Nations League for Germany are at the end of September with Hungary the visitors in Leipzig on 23 September and that is followed by an away game against England on 26 September.
The last World Cup opponents for Germany were decided yesterday when Costa Rica beat New Zealand 1-0 in the play-offs and they will now compete in Group D alongside Japan and Spain. That means there will be a rerun of the opening game of the 2006 World Cup in Germany, which the hosts were able to win 4-2.
Lukas Hradecky and Finland came within a whisker of picking up a point. The Scandinavians lost 3-2 away to Bosnia-Herzegovina. The Finns came back from conceding an early goal with strikes from Teemu Pukki and Benjamin Källman putting them ahead before Bosnia's Edin Dzeko netted a brace to win the game. Bayer 04 captain Hradecky played the full 90 minutes.
Finland are third in Group 3 in League B in the Nations League on four points after four matches. Bosnia-Herzegovina lead the group with eight points. The next opponents Romania (23 September) are currently fourth on three points and Montenegro (26 September) are second with seven points.
France remained without a win in their fourth match in the Nations League on Monday 13 May. The 2018 World Cup winners suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat against their final opponents back then Croatia. Real Madrid's Luka Modric scored the winner for Croatia from the penalty spot on five minutes. Werkself forward Moussa Diaby was an unused sub.
The Équipe Tricolore are bottom of Group 1 in League A with two points after two draws and two defeats. Denmark (9), Croatia (7) and Austria (4) are ahead of them. France are next in action against Austria on 22 September and that is followed by a game against Denmark on 25 September in League A of the Nations League.
France now also know their opponents in their opening game in the World Cup in Qatar. Australia beat Peru in the play-offs on Monday with a 5-4 win on penalties to secure one of the last tickets to the forthcoming World Cup. The other teams in Group D are Denmark and Tunisia.
Bayer 04 midfielder Ibrahim Maza was honoured in Paris in the Best Algerian Young Player category at the Fennec d'Or awards for the Algerian Footballer of the Year, organised for the first time by the football journal La Gazette du Fennec. "It's an honour for me," said the 19-year-old, delighted with the award.
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On the back of two wins within four days, Bayer 04 Women round off an intensive Bundesliga week in the Black Forest. Roberto Pätzold's side have the chance to move back up to third place against SC Freiburg in the final fixture of Matchday 10 on Monday (18:00 CET) and draw level on points with second-placed VfL Wolfsburg.
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The last international break of this calendar year features the final qualifying matches for the 2026 World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico. An overview of who's playing where and when from a Leverkusen point of view.
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Werkself-TV shows the highlights of Bayer 04's 6-0 win against 1. FC Heidenheim 1846 on the 10th matchday of the Bundesliga 2025/26...
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