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Bayer Leverkusen Extend Unbeaten Run To 48 Games With Win At Frankfurt

Published

1 year ago

May 5, 2024

Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen extended their season-long unbeaten run to 48 games with a 5-1 win at Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday.

With Xabi Alonso forced to watch from the stands due to a yellow card suspension, Leverkusen turned on the style, winning with goals from Granit Xhaka, Patrik Schick, Jeremie Frimpong and penalties from Exequiel Palacios and Victor Boniface.

Alonso left midfield lynchpin Florian Wirtz, who turned 21 on Friday, out of the squad with Thursday’s second Champions League semi-final against Roma in mind, but Leverkusen had no problems in attack.

Xhaka opened the scoring with a long-range effort, before Frankfurt equalised through Hugo Ekitike, who scored for the third game in succession.

Schick headed Bayer Leverkusen back in front just before half-time and World Cup winner Palacios scored a third from the penalty spot on the 58-minute mark.

The floodgates opened in the final stages, with Frimpong scoring just five minutes after coming on and then won a penalty with three minutes remaining.

Boniface converted the spot kick for Leverkusen’s first win in Frankfurt for six years.

Bayer Leverkusen, who are unbeaten in 48 across all competitions, need to avoid defeat in two remaining league matches to become the first team to go unbeaten through a Bundesliga season.

Alonso’s side have a 2-0 advantage ahead of Thursday’s second Europa League semi-final leg at home and are through to the final of the German Cup, keeping their dreams of an incredible unbeaten treble alive.

– Union on the edge –

Earlier on Sunday, Bochum won 4-3 at Union Berlin, pushing the hosts closer to the drop just months after they were playing in the Champions League.

In the top division since 2019, Union Berlin finished fourth last season and were playing Champions League football against Real Madrid as recently as December.

Having built their success on home form, a lethargic Union were 3-0 down by half-time thanks to a Maximilian Wittek brace and a goal from former Berliner Keven Schlotterbeck.

Coach Nenad Bjelica made three changes at the break and they had their desired impact immediately.

Yorbe Vertessen and Chris Bedia, both of whom came off the bench, scored in a three-minute period to cut the deficit to one.

With Union on the march and looking for an equaliser, Bochum scored again, Philipp Hofmann heading in from close range.

The home side gave their fans hope again just four minutes later, Benedict Hollerbach again cutting the deficit to just a goal.

Union fought but could not score the equaliser and now sit just two points clear of Mainz in the relegation playoff spot.

Mainz play at promoted Heidenheim later on Sunday and could leapfrog Union into safety.

Leeds loanee Brenden Aaronson, one of three Union players to be subbed on at half-time, criticised his team’s first-half performance.

“It was one of those days when we didn’t show up and that’s all there is to it.

“We need to band together and fight like we did in the second-half. That’s what we need to take away from this game.”

Bochum moved five clear of the drop with two games remaining this season.

Related Topics:Bayer Leverkusen Frankfurt

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Sports

Ballon d’Or: Why Neymar Didn’t Win Award – Gerard

Published

17 hours ago

October 16, 2025

Editor

Barcelona legend, Gerard Piqué has said that Brazil legend, Neymar could have won the Ballon d’Or had he remained at the Catalan side a little longer.

Neymar left Barça for PSG in 2017, becoming the costliest player in the world.

Pique said that the move stopped the Brazilian from winning the Ballon d’Or.

He said that the superstar footballer actually deserved to win the France Football award in his career.

Speaking on the PodPah podcast, Pique, who was Neymar’s teammate for many years at Barcelona, said he tried to convince the Brazilian not to make the move but the former PSG star did not listen to him.

“I’m convinced he deserved a Ballon d’Or. I think going to PSG hurt him. We tried to convince him not to go, we did everything possible.

“Everyone thought he was going to stay, even me, but it seemed that it was already decided. In the end, he had an incredible career,” he said.

The Brazilian was at Camp Nou until 2017 when he decided to move to PSG who were willing to activate his €222 million release clause.

He left for Al-Hilal in 2023 and returned to Brazil with Santos in 2025.

Sports

Lionel Messi Names 10 Best Young Players Currently

Published

17 hours ago

October 16, 2025

Editor

Argentina and Barcelona legend, Lionel Messi, has named the 10 players he sees as future stars.

The legendary attacker has players from Chelsea and Liverpool in his list.

As part of an Adidas campaign, the 8-time Ballon d’Or winner was asked to name the players he deems the next big stars in the game.

The Inter Miami goal king partnering with Adidas Football for the ‘Messi+10: Season 2’ campaign named his 10 best rising stars.

He named Liverpool’s Rio Ngumoha, Chelsea’s Andrey Santos, Kendry Paez, also of Chelsea and Brighton & Hove Albion midfielder, Brajan Gruda.

Others are Nico Paz (Como), Rodrigo Mora (Porto), Mika Godts (Ajax Amsterdam), and Kader Meite (Stade Rennes).

He named two female players, Barcelona’s Clara Serrajordi and Olympique Lyon’s Lily Yohannes.

Messi made a similar selection in 2024 to include Lamine Yamal, Antonio Nusa and Kenan Yildiz.

Sports

2026 World Cup: Why ‘England Can’t Win Trophy’ – Paul Scholes

Published

17 hours ago

October 16, 2025

Editor

Former England international, Paul Scholes, has said that the country stands no chance of winning the 2026 World Cup to be hosted in the USA, Canada and Mexico.

England became the first European country to qualify for the World Cup on Tuesday after beating Latvia 5 goals to nothing.

Scholes said Thomas Tuchel’s team has ‘no chance’ of winning the tournament unless the German gaffer brings his ‘three best players’ back into the squad.

Tuchel will now be hoping to lead England to their first major trophy in men’s football since 1966.

The former Chelsea manager was appointed as Sir Gareth Southgate’s successor last year.

England made it to two European Championship finals and two World Cup semi-finals under Southgate but failed to lift those trophies.

But former Manchester United midfielder, Scholes believes that England has ‘no chance’ unless Tuchel brings his ‘three best players’ back into the fold.

Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Jack Grealish were left out of the team for their last matches.

“I was a little bit surprised. Those three players, they have to be in his squad and they will be in his squad for the World Cup,” Scholes said on The Overlap.

“If you look at the squad now, you would say they have virtually no chance of winning the World Cup. Even with those three players it’s still a big ask but it gives you more of a chance of winning the cup.

“Jude Bellingham has missed a little bit of football but he’s fit now so I would have brought him back in.

“Thomas Tuchel hasn’t got many games left now until the World Cup actually starts, it’s only the November break and then the March one and then we’re there so we need to get these players playing.”

While announcing his squad for the last international break, Tuchel insisted he had ‘no problem’ with the omitted players, especially Bellingham.