Champions League
Some confident, others sedate: Bayer and BVB have to get into the playoffs
Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen have to worry about reaching the Champions League round of 16. Bayern Munich had already qualified before and showed again why.
Despite a defeat against Inter Milan, Borussia Dortmund reached the playoffs for a place in the round of 16 of the Champions League. Coach Niko Kovac’s team lost 0-2 (0-0) to the leaders of the Italian Serie A. This means that BVB remains in the competition, but lost a better starting position for the deciding games.
Because Borussia slipped out of the top 16, the Westphalians have to play their playoff second leg away. In front of 81,365 spectators in the sold-out Dortmund stadium, BVB was safe at the back for a long time, but remained harmless at the front. Federico Dimarco gave Inter the lead in the 81st minute, Andy Diouf (90+4) increased the lead in stoppage time. The playoffs will be drawn on Friday at 12 p.m. in Nyon, Switzerland.
Champions League: BVB disappointed, Bayer and Bayern stable
Bayer Leverkusen reached the playoffs with a convincing win. Kasper Hjulmand’s team easily beat FC Villarreal 3-0 (2-0) and secured their place in the second round. In front of 30,210 spectators in the sold-out Leverkusen Arena, Malik Tillman scored the goals with a brace (12th and 35th minutes) and Alejandro Grimaldo (57th).
Bayer coach Hjulmand made two changes to the starting line-up after the 1-0 win against Bremen, relying on Ezequiel Fernández and Tillman instead of Ernest Poku and Jonas Hofmann, who was not registered for the competition. The Spaniards, who had already been eliminated from the premier class before the game, did not play with their best line-up and made eight changes compared to their last league game – a 2-0 loss against Real Madrid.
A fantastic starting eleven comeback from Jamal Musiala and a joker goal from Harry Kane have secured FC Bayern a top starting position for the knockout phase of the Champions League. With a 2-1 (0-0) draw at PSV Eindhoven, the German football record champions celebrated their seventh win in their eighth game at the end of the preliminary round. The Munich team moved into the round of 16 as second in the league phase and, as desired, avoided the famous FC Arsenal until a possible final.
Crisis club Eintracht Frankfurt said goodbye to the Champions League with a defeat on the home straight of the coaching search. Eintracht lost 0-2 (0-0) against Tottenham Hotspur on the last matchday of the league phase, which was meaningless for them in terms of sport.
Of all people, ex-Frankfurt player Randal Kolo Muani initiated the defeat of the Bundesliga club with his goal in the 47th minute. The 27-year-old left Eintracht for Paris Saint-Germain in the summer of 2023 after a training strike and was consistently booed by Eintracht supporters. But he refrained from making a big celebration pose in front of 58,000 spectators. Substitute Dominic Solanke made it 2-0 (77′).
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