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Germany: Bayer Leverkusen are Bundesliga champions

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Bayer Leverkusen 5 - 0 Werder Bremen Undefeated Bayer Leverkusen clinched their inaugural Bundesliga championship on Sunday with a resounding 5-0 triumph over Werder Bremen, ending Bayern Munich's 11-year dominance of the league. Under the leadership of Xabi Alonso, Leverkusen, who have amassed an unprecedented 29-match unbeaten streak this season, secured their first title since 1993. They currently hold a commanding 16-point lead over Bayern with just five matches left in the season. Leverkusen left nothing to chance, securing the title in their first opportunity, with Florian Wirtz netting a hat-trick in a victory that extended their unbeaten streak across all competitions to an impressive 43 games this season. They earned a penalty in the 24th minute, which Victor Boniface, returning from a three-month injury hiatus, converted, marking his first league goal since December and his 11th of the campaign. More news from across Germany Despite numerous opportunities to increase ...

Bundesliga: Leverkusen extend lead at the top

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Bayer Leverkusen 3 - 0 Bayern Munich Bayer Leverkusen dealt a significant blow in the Bundesliga title race with a resounding triumph over Bayern Munich, propelling them five points clear at the top. Xabi Alonso' s squad seized control in the opening half as Josip Stanisic expertly slotted home at the back post. The crowd erupted again shortly after halftime when Alex Grimaldo found the net from a challenging angle. Jeremie Frimpong sealed the victory in injury time as goalkeeper Manuel Neuer ventured up for a corner kick. Click here for more Bundesliga news and stories More Bayern Munich news from European Super Football Dreams spark among home fans At the BayArena, the home fans created an incredible atmosphere, and this had a positive impact on the players and coaching staff. The scenes at tbe end of the match proved the strong connection between fans and players. Could this incredible atmosphere spur Leverkusen to a Bundesliga title? Many of the neutrals in this title race...

UCL: Easy night in Rotterdam for Leverkusen

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Feyenoord 0 - 4 Bayer Leverkusen  Florian Wirtz shone on his Champions League debut, netting twice as Bayer Leverkusen secured a comfortable win over Feyenoord. The German champions took an early lead five minutes in, with Wirtz calmly slotting the ball into the bottom corner from 20 yards out. Xabi Alonsoā€™s adventurous wing-backs linked up beautifully for the second goal, as Jeremie Frimpong delivered a cross that found Alex Grimaldo, who finished easily and without much pressure from the home side's defence. Frimpong, a former Celtic player, then set up 21-year-old German international Wirtz for his second goal, a well-executed volley. Champions League: 2024/2025 (eurosuperfootball.blogspot.com) Leverkusen had effectively wrapped up the match before half-time when Edmond Tapsoba's header was deflected into the net by Feyenoord goalkeeper Timon Wellenreuther. Despite having fewer attempts on goal than their opponents, the Bundesliga side displayed ruthless efficiency. ...

How the 2023/2024 Bundesliga title was won

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 The 2023/2024 season will probably go down as one of the most iconic in the Bundesliga's history. The season began on 18 August 2023 and concluded on 18 May 2024.  On 14 April 2024, Bayer Leverkusen were crowned champions for the first time with five matches to spare following a 5ā€“0 win over Werder Bremen.  Theyy would go onto become the first Bundesliga team in history to finish a season unbeaten, ending the campaign with a record of 28 wins and six draws. They would also go onto win the German Cup and reach the Europa League final. It was in that Europa League final match where they lost their only game of the season. Let's explore some key stories match reports from the season.  In August, it was announced that Bayern Munich had signed Harry Kane. The transfer was completed for an initial sum of around 100 million euros (Ā£86.4 million), and there was believed to be additional provisions for performance-related bonuses.  At the time of the announcement, w...

UEL: Atalanta win Europa League

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Atalanta 3 - 0 Bayer Leverkusen Ademola Lookman delivered a stunning hat-trick as Atalanta ended their 61-year trophy drought, crushing Bayer Leverkusenā€™s hopes of an unbeaten season in the Europa League final at a lively Aviva Stadium. Both teams brought a massive wave of support and vibrant colours to Dublin for what was Atalantaā€™s first European final and only Leverkusenā€™s third. Xabi Alonsoā€™s Leverkusen side had remained undefeated for 51 games this season and were just two matches away from perfection. The former Charlton Athletic winger Lookman had other plans. He netted the first goal with a top-corner strike from Davide Zappacostaā€™s cutback. His second goal was a thing of beauty, nutmegging Granit Xhaka before curling a fantastic shot into the bottom corner from 20 yards. Lookman's third was equally brilliant, a step-over to beat Edmond Tapsoba before smashing the ball into the roof of the net. Leverkusen who have been known for their dramatic comebacks this season...

Icons: Michael Ballack

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It's time to have another look at an icon from the history of football. This time it's Michael Ballack. A former German midfielder who played at the highest level of the game.  A summary Ballack is among the top goal scorers in the history of the German national team. During his career, he won the German Footballer of the Year award three times. The midfielder was known for his passing range, powerful shot, physical strength and commanding presence in midfield. The one negative from his career was that he never won the Champions League. He did pick up two runner-up medals in 2002 with Leverkusen and 2008 with Chelsea.  The start of his career Ballack's career started to take off when he was transferred to 1. FC Kaiserslautern in 1997. He won the Bundesliga in his first season at the club, his first major honour. He became a first team regular in 1998ā€“99 season and also earned his first senior national cap for the German national side. He moved to Bayer Leverkusen for ...

Germany: Tuchel to leave Bayern Munich at the end of the season

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There has been some interesting news from Germany It has been announced that Manager Thomas Tuchel will be bidding farewell to Bayern Munich at the conclusion of this season. The 50-year-old stepped in for Julian Nagelsmann at the helm of the German champions in March 2023, signing on until June 2025.  The former Chelsea boss will now be departing a year earlier than anticipated, as part of what is described as a strategic shift in Bayern's sporting direction. Under his guidance, Bayern clinched last season's Bundesliga title after he assumed control in the spring. Nevertheless, they currently find themselves trailing leaders Bayer Leverkusen by eight points following consecutive league defeats. One of these setbacks was a resounding 3-0 loss to Leverkusen , compounded by a 1-0 defeat to Lazio in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 encounter. Check out the highlights from that recent defeat to Leverkusen.  Bayer Remain Undefeated! | Bayer Leverkusen - FC Bayer...

UEL: Roma to face Sevilla in final

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 Let's explore all the key moments from a dramatic night in the Europa League Bayer 04 Leverkusen 0 - 1 Roma (Roma won 1-0 on aggregate) Jose Mourinho's Roma reached the Europa League final after holding Bayer Leverkusen to a goalless draw in the second leg of the semi-final. Xabi Alonso's Leverkusen side could not find the breakthrough as Jose Mourinho delivered a tactical masterclass.  You can hear what Mourinho had to say in the video below. Footage:  JOSƉ MOURINHO | POST MATCH INTERVIEW | BAYER-ROMA - YouTube Is he still the Special One? Click here to read the latest Mourinho news stories. Can the iconic manager win yet another European trophy? His side can look forward to a second European final in as many years having not reached one for 31 years before last season. Who would they be facing though? They would have to wait another 30 minutes before finding out. UECL: Roma win Europa Conference League (eurosuperfootball.blogspot.com) Sevilla 2 - 1 Juventus (Sevi...

Euro 2024: Some stars of the tournament

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It's time to explore the stars of Euro 2024. Who was your favourite player from the tournament? We asked some of our contributors what they thought and examined how their careers might develop over the next few years.  Nico Williams - Spain Athletic Bilbao's talented winger stood out in Spain's 1-0 victory over Italy. He scored a powerful goal in their 4-1 win over Georgia and netted a brilliant finish in the final against England. Throughout the summer, he has been heavily linked with a move to Barcelona, as they reportedly consider him their top target. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia - Georgia Georgia's 23-year-old striker Kvaratskhelia made a significant impact for Georgia during Euro 2024, and there are rumours that PSG is interested in signing him. Despite his side losing in the last 16, Kvaratskhelia has gained more admirers. His club Napoli have set a value of Ā£85.2m for him, which might be too high for PSG. There are also reports linking Liverpool to the player. Ho...

Can Celtic cause a shock in Munich

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Bayern Munich v Celtic preview Bayern Munich lead 2-1 after what was an entertaining first leg in Glasgow Author - Sean M After edging past Celtic with a 2-1 victory in Glasgow last week, Bayern Munich will be eager to confirm their place in the Champions League last 16 when they host the Scottish champions at the Allianz Arena on Tuesday. Will the atmosphere at Bayern Munich match the one at Celtic? Vincent Kompanyā€™s side were forced to defend for long spells in Saturdayā€™s goalless draw with Bayer Leverkusen, though they remain eight points clear at the top of the Bundesliga. This contest, however, is expected to be a different affair, with Bayern likely to dominate on home turf. Celtic, meanwhile, will be looking to spring a surprise in Munich. Brendan Rodgersā€™ men head into the fixture with confidence after a commanding 3-0 victory over Dundee United, which extended their lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership. Remarkably, Celtic are in the knockout rounds for the first tim...

UEL reaction: FerencvƔrosi TC 2 - 3 Celtic

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Celtic picked up a crucial Europa League victory against Ferencvaros in Budapest. The Glasgow side moved a point behind Real Betis, who were thrashed 4-0 at Bayer Leverkusen, with two games to play in the group. The Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou told BT Sport: "Full credit to the boys. It was three great goals, I thought we could have had a couple more. I'm disappointed at conceding the second goal as I don't think it was a true reflection of how we played tonight. "The fact we can get three goals away from home is because we just go at teams. I still think that is the way forward. It's the kind of team we want to be and I think it's the team our supporters want us to be." One Celtic fan told us: "After some of the appalling performances last season, this campaign has been a breath of fresh air. We are looking superb at times and we could easily progress to the next stage of this competition." Another spoke with great passion about their man...

PL News: Slot confirmed as Liverpool manager

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 Feyenoord manager Arne Slot has been announced as Liverpool's new boss. In April, Liverpool struck a deal with the Dutch club after deciding the 45-year-old Slot was the right person to replace Jurgen Klopp at Anfield. Klopp, who had been at the helm since October 2015, departed following Liverpool's season-ending victory over Wolves on Sunday. After the match, the 56-year-old German urged Liverpool supporters to back their new manager, leading a chant of "Arne Slot, na na na na na". Slot will officially begin his three-year tenure at Liverpool on 1 June, pending a work permit. During his time at Feyenoord, Slot guided the team to the Eredivisie title in the 2022-23 seaso n, and this year they won the Dutch Cup and finished as league runners-up. Liverpool were particularly impressed by Slot's attacking style, his personality, and his ability to develop players, which made him their top candidate. Slot, who took charge at Feyenoord in 2021, expressed his inter...

Germany: Bayern Munich name Vincent Kompany as new head coach

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 There has been a huge announcement in Germany Bayern Munich have named Vincent Kompany as their new head coach on a three-year contract.  The 38-year-old Belgian takes over from Thomas Tuchel, moving from Burnley to the Bundesliga team after both clubs agreed on a compensation fee thought to be around Ā£10.2 million. Kompany led Burnley to victory in the Championship during the 2022-23 season, but the team suffered  relegation from the Premier League this season, finishing 19th. After retiring as a player in 2020, Kompany joined Burnley from Anderlecht in 2022 and signed a five-year contract extension just last year. Despite this, he declined to comment on his future following Burnley's home loss to Nottingham Forest on the final day of the season. Kompany in high demand despite a poor season Despite a tough season that saw Burnley return to the Championship with only five league wins, the club was planning a swift return to the Premier League under Kompany's leadersh...

UCL: Bayern end Arsenal's quest for Champions League glory

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 Bayern Munich 1 - 0 Arsenal  (Bayern Munich won 3-2 on aggregate) Arsenal endured a heart-wrenching departure from the Champions League as Bayern Munich clinched victory in a thrilling match at the Allianz Arena. Joshua Kimmich's commanding header in the 63rd minute, off Raphael Guerreiro's cross, sealed the Germans' path to the semi-finals with a 3-2 aggregate win, following a 2-2 draw in London in the first leg. Despite hosting the first leg at Emirates Stadium, Arsenal were optimistic about progressing against a Bayern Munich squad that had struggled in their domestic campaign and were missing key players Serge Gnabry and Kingsley Coman due to injuries. In a tense second leg, observed by Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke, Gabriel Martinelli had the best opportunity of the first half for the Gunners but failed to beat Manuel Neuer, who made a crucial save after Jamal Musiala's earlier attempt. UCL and UEL (eurosuperfootball.blogspot.com) Although Harry Kane had limite...

UEL: Celtic 2 - 0 FerencvƔrosi TC

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Celtic kept alive their Europa League knockout hopes with a hard-fought win over the Hungarian champions Ferencvaros. Kyogo Furuhashi slid home the opener from a sublime Jota pass after a frustrating first half. Balint Vecsei's unfortunate own goal final confirmed Celtic's win after Callum McGregor's had previously missed a penalty. Celtic's defeats against Real Betis and Bayer Leverkusen meant they had to win this match to have any chance of progressing in the competition. This was something acknowledged by manager Ange Postecoglou before the match. Click here for more Celtic news Some stats for you Celtic have won six of their eight matches at home to Hungarian opponents in all European competitions (D1 L1), keeping a clean sheet in four of their last five such games. A stat provided from the BBC:  Celtic have now ended a run of fourteen Europa League matches without a clean sheet. They recordedone for the first time since October 2019 at home to CFR Cluj. The Glasg...

De Kuip prepares to host two international giants

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Netherlands v Spain Preview Spain, the reigning UEFA Nations League champions, head to Rotterdam for the first leg of their quarter-final clash against the Netherlands. Author - Ajay Feyenoord's stadium will host the match The winners of this two-legged tie will progress to the semi-finals in June, where they will face either Croatia or France. After being knocked out by England in the Euro 2024 semi-finals last summer, the Netherlands secured second place in League A Group 3 of the Nations League, picking up nine points from six matches (W2 D3 L1) in the latter half of last year. Since the competition's inception in 2018, the Dutch have twice come close to lifting the trophyā€”finishing as runners-up to Portugal in 2019 before losing the third-place playoff to Italy in 2023. READ MORE: What's the point of the UEFA Nations League Manager Ronald Koeman will be looking to shore up a defence that struggled during the group stage, conceding seven goalsā€”the most of any team at...

Latest gossip: 11/01/22

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Lets look at what all the newspapers are saying across the continent. The rumour mill is rather busy at the moment.  Premier League rumours and stories Liverpool are reportedly ready to trigger the Ā£75m release clause in Sevilla and France defender Jules Kounde's contract this month, with Chelsea and Real Madrid also interested in him. Chelsea's German defender Antonio Rudiger, out of contract in the summer and yet to sign a new deal with the European champions, is said to prefer a move to Real Madrid over Paris St-Germain if he leaves London.  Uruguay striker Edinson Cavani has committed himself to Manchester United for the rest of the season after talks with boss Ralf Rangnick. In terms of incoming players, United have discussed a move for Borussia Monchengladbach's Denis Zakaria this month. They are yet to make a bid for the Swiss midfielder.  FA Cup: Man United hold on to beat Aston Villa  Newcastle's hopes of signing defender Sven Botman during the January t...

Transfer Rumour: Walker wanted by Bayern Munich

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Bayern Munich want to sign another English player It is believed that they want to sign Kyle Walker from Manchester City Bayern came close to signing the Manchester City's star player last summer. However, Pep Guardiola convinced him to stay at the 11th hour and he signed a new contract, potentially keeping him at the Etihad until June 2026. He has proved to be an important player in Manchester City's quest for a record-breaking fourth successive Premier League title. Earlier this season, when Kevin De Bruyne was injured, Kyle Walker took over as the captain. Walker has since been in excellent form, which has reignited Bayern's interest in him. This video from Monsif Attoui would perhaps explain why Bayern interested in signing Walker despite his age. They will be hoping to put together a team that can bring the title back from Leverkusen next season.  Both City and the player in question are aware that the Bundesliga giants are interested in signing the right back du...

UCL: Barca thrash Swiss side

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Barcelona 5 - 0 Young Boys Robert Lewandowski netted twice as Barcelona cruised to victory over Young Boys in the Champions League. Stadium - Estadi OlĆ­mpic LluĆ­s Companys Lewandowski opened the scoring just eight minutes in, slotting home Raphinhaā€™s cross at the far post. Barca soon doubled their advantage, with Raphinha tucking away the rebound after Pedriā€™s initial shot was blocked. The La Liga leaders were in full control, and just three minutes later, IƱigo MartĆ­nez added a third, heading in from close range following a pinpoint free-kick from Pedri. Barcelona extended their lead early in the second half, with MartĆ­nez nodding the ball back across goal for Lewandowski to tap in his second of the night. Champions League: 2024/2025 (eurosuperfootball.blogspot.com) Young Boysā€™ best opportunity came when Joel Monteiro's effort struck the crossbar, but their night went from bad to worse in the 81st minute when Mohamed Ali Camara inadvertently turned Alejandro Balde's cross ...

Champions League: Results and reaction as the competition returns

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Let's explore the key results and stories as the Champions League returned this week Lazio 1 - 0 Bayern Munich Ciro Immobile scored a penalty to give Lazio a surprising victory over Bayern Munich in the first leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie. The penalty was scored from the spot midway through the second half after Dayot Upamecano was sent off for a foul on Gustav Isaksen. Bayern featured the likes of Harry Kane but they were unable to respond in an underwhelming display. This was another low point in a bad few days for Bayern after their poor result and performance against Leverkusen in the Bundesliga. Highlights below from TNT Sports:  Immobile Sinks 10-Man Bayern šŸ˜³ | Lazio 1-0 Bayern Munich | Champions League Round Of 16 Highlights - YouTube Paris Saint Germain 2 - 0 Real Sociedad  Kylian Mbappe put in a great performance for PSG as his side took control of their Champions League last-16 tie against Real Sociedad. Mbappe, who has reportedly requested a move...