Goalkeeper Bernd Leno and Julian Brandt have been called up by Joachim Löw for the next step towards qualifying for the 2018 World Cup in Russia. The Germany team are runaway leaders in Group C with eight wins from eight games and they just need one point from Thursday night's (20.45 CET) away game in Belfast against closest rivals Northern Ireland to secure qualification. The final group match is on Sunday 8 October against Azerbaijan in Kaiserslautern.
Benjamin Henrichs and Jonathan Tah, who have often been in Löw's squad, are set to play for the Germany U21s this week. The team coached by Stefan Kuntz have European Championship qualifiers against Azerbaijan (Friday, 6 October 19.00 CET) and away to Norway (Tuesday, 10 October 19.00 CET) , Following on from the 1-0 victory over Kosovo on the first matchday. Another player for Germany is Kai Havertz with the U19 side playing three European Championship qualifiers in Poland: against Belarus (Wednesday, 4 October, 12.00 CET), Northern Ireland (Saturday, 7 October, 12.00 CET and the hosts Poland (Tuesday, 10 October, 18.00 CET). Havertz is joined in the squad by Bayer 04 U19 players Sam Schreck and Atakan Akkaynak.
Switzerland are also in with a fantastic chance of playing in the FIFA tournament in Russia in 2018. Admir Mehmedi and his team-mates have performed impressively in Group B and, like Germany, have a maximum return of 24 points from their eight games. The Swiss round off their campaign against Hungary (Saturday, seven October) and in a top of the group clash with the European Champions Portugal (Tuesday, 10 October) on three less points. The winners of the nine qualifying groups go through and the eight best runners-up play off for four places at the World Cup.
The situation In Group D is not looking good for Julian Baumgartlinger and Austria as they are five points adrift. The final two matches see Austria take on group leaders Serbia (Friday, 6 October) and bottom of the group Moldova (Monday, 9 October). Finland and Joel Pohjanpalo already have no chance of qualifying in Group I. The final opponents for Finland are Croatia (Friday, 6 October) and Turkey (Monday, 9 October). Greece are still in with a chance of finishing runners-up in Group H. The team coached by Michael Skibbe including Panos Retsos, who recently celebrated his debut, need two wins against Cyprus (Saturday, 7 October) and Gibraltar (Tuesday, 10 October).
Charles Aránguiz can only cross his fingers for Chile from afar following the calf injury he sustained against Schalke on Friday. 'La Rocha' are in danger of missing out in the South American World Cup qualifying group: The team are currently in sixth place and they need to overtake either Argentina or Peru. Only the first four teams qualify directly and the country in fifth place team plays off against the Oceania representatives. Chile are at home first against Ecuador (Friday, 6 October) and then are away to the group winners Brazil (Wednesday, 11 October).
After Jens Nowotny was officially named a Bayer 04 honorary captain last weekend, the long-standing Werkself player is part of the Leverkusen delegation on the trophy tour to New York City next week from 11 to 14 September. In an interview with bayer04.de, the 50-year-old talked about his expectations ahead of the trip to the metropolis on the East Coast of the USA.
Show moreThe German Football League (DFL) has confirmed the dates and kick-off times for matchdays 6 to 12 of the 2024/25 Bundesliga season. Full details of the Bayer 04 fixtures.
Show moreMarkus Rehm, a long jumper at TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen, won the gold medal for the fourth time in succession at the Paralympics on Wednesday.
Show moreThe fixture details for the second round of the DFB Pokal 2024/25 have been confirmed. The home tie for Bayer 04 against second division SV 07 Elversberg is on Tuesday, 29 October with the kick off at 18.00 CET (live on Sky). That was announced by the German Football Association (DFB) on Thursday.
Show more