BUNDESLIGA
BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE
27 October, 2015
14 October, 2015
Aaron Ramsey and Gareth Bale ensure celebrations continue after Euro 2016 qualification
A rapturous rout to enhance claims Wales can go far at Euro 2016 this was not. But the sell-out crowd who came to share the experience did not really care in the end.
They wanted to have fun, and while the scoreline against the fifth-worst side in world football was slender, there was enough cause for merriment.
Aaron Ramsey’s goal early in the second half allowed the match to end with festivity rather that friction and the bouncing dance of a celebration by the touchline in tribute to Joe Ledley’s bizarre efforts in Bosnia that went viral showed the unity of this group.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football
Top of the world! Kevin De Bruyne and Eden Hazard take Belgium to No 1 in the rankings
Belgium secured top spot in Group B after Dries Mertens made up for a howling first-half miss to score and set up another in their 3-1 Euro 2016 qualifying victory over Israel on Tuesday.
The win means Belgium are also set to rise to number one in FIFA's volatile ranking system, while Israel's hopes of reaching the tournament in France next year were ended.
Belgium had already qualified after a 4-1 victory over Andorra on Saturday and Tuesday's win kept them two points clear of Wales in the standings.
Belgium had the lion's share of possession throughout the match and would have been ahead at halftime but for a spectacular miss from Mertens. Faced with an open goal some two metres out, he somehow shot wide.
In the 64th minute, however, he made amends, taking a pass from Kevin De Bruyne and shifting right to bypass the defence and drive low past Israel keeper Ofir Marciano.
De Bruyne's dipping and bouncing free kick was also too much for Marciano in the 78th minute and Mertens was on hand again six minutes later to find an unmarked Eden Hazard in front of goal, for an easy finish.
Israel came close midway through the first half when Eran Zahavi curled a free kick against the post. Tomer Hemed's headed goal for Israel in the 88th minute was simply a consolation.
'I am super pleased. Yes! No. 1 in the world,' said Mertens on Belgium's unlikely run from 71st place in 2007 to sweeping past Germany and Argentina over the past weekend to top place.
Israel knew what opposition it faced and fell back in defense even if it needed victory for a shot at advancing to the playoffs.
Before a raucous crowd of 42,000 at the King Baudouin stadium, it fell to Mertens to break the deadlock. As so often, Belgium then pushed through in the final stages of the match.
'Whatever happens, we get through it,' added defender Vincent Kompany.
The defeat ended Israel's slim hopes of claiming a play-off spot.
Bosnia finished above Israel after two goals from midfielder Haris Medunjanin and a towering header from substitute Milan Djuric were enough to secure a 3-2 victory in Cyprus.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football
13 October, 2015
Lithuania 0-3 England
12 October, 2015
Real Madrid boss Rafa Benitez tries to get Sergio Ramos back on side after spats with Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema
Player power seems alive and kicking at Real Madrid after Rafa Benitez was pressured into calling Sergio Ramos to explain comments he made about the player after Sunday’s Madrid derby draw.
Benitez had been asked after the game if any of the mistakes had particularly upset him and he bemoaned Ramos’ moment of madness in the first half that saw him give the ball away and then recover only to fly into a tackle in the area and concede a penalty.
‘What upset me the most was the Ramos error when he gives the ball away by taking an unnecessary risk,’ the coach said.
Marco Verratti is the 'new Andrea Pirlo'
-Marco Verratti being labelled as the 'new Andrea Pirlo, by the Italian press
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/
Real Madrid in injury 'crisis'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football
Barcelona keen on signing Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Bayern forward Thomas Muller has been linked with a move to Man United
Manchester United target Thomas Muller appears to have opened the door to a move to the Premier League by admitting a move to England is 'very tempting' due to the wages.
Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge recently said United were wasting their time in trying to entice Muller to Old Trafford and told Louis van Gaal's side to stop sending emails regarding his availability.
Muller, who earns in the region of £110,000-a-week at Bayern Munich, could more than double his wages if he was to seal a move to England.
'I know that a lot of German clubs are unhappy with the Premier League clubs' spending, but I think it is something good for all clubs in the end.
'It can only be a good thing for football when clubs invest so much money.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football
Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge recently said United were wasting their time in trying to entice Muller to Old Trafford and told Louis van Gaal's side to stop sending emails regarding his availability.
However the 26-year-old now appears to have opened the door to a move to the Premier League - if the money is right.
Muller, speaking to German newspaper Welt am Sonntag, said: 'In the end, we should not forget that playing football is our job.
Muller, speaking to German newspaper Welt am Sonntag, said: 'In the end, we should not forget that playing football is our job.
'So people should accept that wages will always play a role in a player's decision-making. Of course, the wages that are being paid in the Premier League are very tempting. It would be hypocrisy to deny that.
'You have to look at the complete package to determine whether something is right for you. What's good for you one day will not necessarily still be good for you the day after.
WAGES - GERMANY VS ENGLAND
Muller, who earns in the region of £110,000-a-week at Bayern Munich, could more than double his wages if he was to seal a move to England.
At Manchester United for example, Wayne Rooney earns £250,000-a-week while Bastian Schweinsteiger is on £180,000-a-week at the age of 31.
'I know that a lot of German clubs are unhappy with the Premier League clubs' spending, but I think it is something good for all clubs in the end.
'It can only be a good thing for football when clubs invest so much money.'
Muller's latest comments will encourage Van Gaal, who knows all about the forward having worked with him during his time at Bayern Munich.
Van Gaal has already managed to raid his former side for Germany captain Bastian Schweinsteiger.
Schweinsteiger decided to leave his beloved Bayern Munich in the summer as he was keen on taking up a new challenge away from his homeland.
Muller, who still has four years left to run on his £110,000-a-week contract, would be a harder deal to complete due to Bayern's reluctance to cash in on the lethal goalscorer.
The Red Devils currently just have three recognised senior strikers on their books with Anthony Martial, Wayne Rooney and James Wilson at the club.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football
11 October, 2015
Bosnia 2-0 Wales: Gareth Bale and Co seal Euro 2016 place
It will be the first time since the World Cup in 1958 that Wales have appeared in the finals of a major tournament.
That Cyprus pulled off a shock win in the Israeli capital, courtesy of Walsall defender Jason Demetriou, meant the 18 points collected already by Chris Coleman’s team will prove sufficient to ending the long wait.
They are heading to Euro 2016. Confirmed. The result here in Zenica was not of significance in the end. Wales had enough in the bank already.
‘We are like brothers on the pitch and this is what happens when you feel like that,’ said Bale. ‘This is a dream come true for me, but it doesn’t stop here. We have got to go to France and try to do some business.’
Speed is one of the illustrious names of Welsh football to never reach a major tournament. Among a lengthy list are Ryan Giggs, Neville Southall, Mark Hughes, Craig Bellamy.
But this 2015 vintage will not be filed into the same drawer as those agonising near misses. Not alongside Russia 2003: Vadim Evseev’s solitary strike. Nor Romania 1993: Paul Bodin’s penalty against the crossbar. Not Scotland 1985: Davie Cooper’s controversial spot-kick overshadowed by the death of Jock Stein. Nor Scotland 1977: Joe Jordan’s handball.
No. Over the course of qualifying Coleman’s Wales displayed the minerals.
This ground only holds 15,600 but the hosts’ fervour – non-stop bouncing, endless chanting – ensured intimidation
This was a journey to test the Welsh resolve, both geographically and mentally. The Balkans has been the scene of Coleman’s darkest moments: the 6-1 humiliation in Serbia that prompted him to consider his position; the 2-1 defeat to Montenegro a year later in September 2013.
Showing mettle in Bosnia would go some way to validating the narrative of redemption, aiding theory an eighth-place world ranking is not absurd.
The few hundred Welsh souls who had made the trip were only allowed in 15 minutes before the start for security reasons. Ticketing arrangements meant they were required to be individuals who had followed Wales long and far, experiencing the lows in hope of an exhilarating high like this evening promised.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football
So there is such a thing as joyous defeat. Wales lost to Bosnia but it transpired the most meaningful action was taking place some 1,800 miles way in Jerusalem.
That Cyprus pulled off a shock win in the Israeli capital, courtesy of Walsall defender Jason Demetriou, meant the 18 points collected already by Chris Coleman’s team will prove sufficient to ending the long wait.
Man was more than a decade away from walking on the moon the last time Wales qualified for a major tournament finals and while this performance could not be classed as stellar, for these players the feeling at its climax was rocket-fuelled.
They are heading to Euro 2016. Confirmed. The result here in Zenica was not of significance in the end. Wales had enough in the bank already.
Gareth Bale put it succinctly. ‘This has got to be the best loss of my life!’ beamed the Real Madrid star. ‘It was a difficult game but the only thing that matters is we have gone through.’
Everyone in this ground was happy. Bosnia are chasing the play-off place and Israel’s choke in the Holy City has put them in pole position for third in Group B.
Late goals from Milan Djuric and Vedad Ibisevic inflicted defeat on Wales but that could not deny the raucous celebrations enjoyed by Bale and his teammates when the final whistle went.
This crop have succeeded where many before failed, and en masse they shared in abandon their joy with the 750 Welsh fans able to make this game. Scarves waved, fists pumped, smiles spread.
‘We are like brothers on the pitch and this is what happens when you feel like that,’ said Bale. ‘This is a dream come true for me, but it doesn’t stop here. We have got to go to France and try to do some business.’
Coleman admitted full-time did not bring instant realisation. ‘Obviously when I was walking off I saw our supporters singing and then our secretary, Mark Evans, whispered in my ear that Israel had lost, so it was game on after that, all smiles.’
Commendably, Coleman used the moment to pay tribute to predecessor Gary Speed. ‘Gary has been with us all the way and I am sure he is smiling down on us,’ he said.
Speed is one of the illustrious names of Welsh football to never reach a major tournament. Among a lengthy list are Ryan Giggs, Neville Southall, Mark Hughes, Craig Bellamy. 
No. Over the course of qualifying Coleman’s Wales displayed the minerals.
After the night's result, Euro 2016 will be the first major competition since the 1986 World Cup to feature three of the nations of the UK - in that year England, Scotland and Northern Ireland all qualified for the finals in Mexico.
The fraught nature of this tie was shown some two hours before kick-off. Undeterred by billowing rain, groups of supporters outside Stadion Bilino Polje lit red flares to cast an eerie light into the night sky. Inside, a pitch walkabout by Wales players drew deafening whistles from a significant number of Bosnians already in their seats.
This ground only holds 15,600 but the hosts’ fervour – non-stop bouncing, endless chanting – ensured intimidation
This was a journey to test the Welsh resolve, both geographically and mentally. The Balkans has been the scene of Coleman’s darkest moments: the 6-1 humiliation in Serbia that prompted him to consider his position; the 2-1 defeat to Montenegro a year later in September 2013.
Showing mettle in Bosnia would go some way to validating the narrative of redemption, aiding theory an eighth-place world ranking is not absurd.
Aside from that, this game took place in Zenica, an hour-long drive from Sarajevo, along winding roads through mountainous landscape.
Having landed in the Bosnian capital, the Welsh squad needed to travel through the city that still bears the scars of the four-year siege during the Yugoslav Wars. They were driven past the bullet holes that blot ruined buildings like macabre acne; past the thousands of white stones on the hillside that mark graves of some 13,952 who perished.
The few hundred Welsh souls who had made the trip were only allowed in 15 minutes before the start for security reasons. Ticketing arrangements meant they were required to be individuals who had followed Wales long and far, experiencing the lows in hope of an exhilarating high like this evening promised. 
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