Germany coach Joachim Loew said Tuesday he wants a tough warm-up programme for his team in the build-up to Euro 2012 with plans in the pipeline to face World Cup finalists Holland.
With Germany five-points clear at the top of Euro 2012 qualifier Group A, the Euro 2008 finalists look set to qualify as group winners for the European Championships to be held in the Ukraine and Poland in 18 months.
If Germany qualify directly, they are set to play Holland in November 2011 followed by a match against the Ukraine.
Then in February 2012, they are set to face France, but no dates or venues have been set yet for any of those games.
We want to test ourselves against the strongest possible sides, Loew told German daily Bild.
Germany s next game is a friend…
Nations from the remaining five confederations learned their route to Russia 2018 on Saturday as the World Cup qualifying draw was completed in St Petersburg.
With qualifying in Asia already underway, world champions Germany were among the nations drawn during the ceremony.
World Cup 2018 qualifying draw in full:
UEFA (Final group stage)
Group A: Netherlands, France, Sweden, Bulgaria, Belarus, Luxembourg
Group B: Portugal, Switzerland, Hungary, Faroe Islands, Latvia, Andorra
Group C: Germany, Czech Republic, Northern Ireland, Norway, Azerbaijan, San Marino
Group D: Wales, Austria, Serbia, Republic of Ireland, Moldova, Georgia
Group E: Romania, Denmark, Poland, Montenegro, Armenia, Kazakhstan
Group F: England, Slovakia, Scotland, Slovenia, …
Germany s penultimate friendly before Euro 2024 ended in a frustrating 0-0 draw against Ukraine on Monday.
Ilkay Gundogan missed a key chance in the first half, tamely firing at Anatoliy Trubin as he failed to break the deadlock.
Maximilian Beier proved a threat off the bench for the hosts, striking the bar and forcing a good stop out of the goalkeeper.
Germany were indebted to Manuel Neuer too, as he made big saves to keep out Roman Yaremchuk and Andriy Yarmolenko to ensure Ukraine s wait for a win over Die Mannschaft went on.
All square in Nuremberg as the game finishes 0-0
DFB/ Philipp Reinhard
— German Football (@DFB_Team_EN)
Data Debrief: Die Mannschaft misfire
Germany created an expected goals tally (xG) of …
The road to Russia is growing shorter after the total of 209 different nations fought for their place at the prestigious tournament for well over two years.
The battle is far from being over as the final list of 32 participants is yet to be determined.
Qualified Nations
Twenty-three countries have thus far secured their place at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. The hosts lead the way for the European group with Belgium, England, France, Germany, Iceland, Serbia, Poland, Spain and Portugal having already secured their place at the showpiece finals as group winners.
Brazil have long clinched their World Cup berth as winners of the South American qualifying group whereas Colombia, Uruguay and Argentina join them, together with Costa Rica, Mexico and as the memb…
Ian Maatsen will join the Netherlands Euro 2024 squad after injuries forced two midfielders out of the tournament.
He will officially replace Frenkie de Jong, who the Netherlands confirmed would miss out due to an ankle injury he suffered while playing for Barcelona in April.
In Oranje s final friendly before the tournament, a 4-0 victory over Iceland on Monday, Teun Koopmeiners pulled out of the starting line-up after sustaining a muscle injury in the warm-up.
In a post to X on Tuesday, the Netherlands said: Teun Koopmeiners misses Euro 2024.
The midfielder won’t be able to participate after injuring himself during the warm-up of the match against Iceland yesterday.
We’re thinking of you, Teun.
Ian Maatsen will join Oranje s traini…
Florian Wirtz should follow Xabi Alonso s lead and reject interest from Europe s top clubs to stay at Bayer Leverkusen beyond this season, says former Germany international Carsten Ramelow.
Wirtz has been one of the standout performers in a remarkable campaign for Leverkusen, who are just one win away from clinching their first Bundesliga title.
The attacking midfielder has 18 goal involvements in 28 league outings this term (eight goals, 10 assists), with his latest goal coming from the penalty spot in Saturday s win over Union Berlin.
Among all Bundesliga players, Wirtz ranks third for successful dribbles (77), fifth for chances created (70) and fourth for expected assists (9.23 xA) this season.
His performances have won him plenty of admirers, with Li…
Thiago Alcantara has retired from football after the end of his injury-affected spell with Liverpool.
Thiago joined Liverpool from Bayern Munich in a deal worth £20million in September 2020, having helped the Bavarian giants win the Champions League one month earlier.
The midfielder had previously been part of the Barcelona squad that won Europe s premier club competition in 2010-11, also winning 11 league titles throughout his time with the Blaugrana and Bayern.
However, he was hampered by injuries after arriving at Anfield, only managing 68 Premier League appearances in total.
Forty-nine of those came in his first two campaigns with the Reds, and he only managed a solitary outing in 2023-24 before the expiration of his contract.
Rather than fi…
It personally did not go according to the script for Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo early in Sunday s Euro 2016 final.
Seeking to make amends for Portugal s Euro 2004 final defeat to Greece, Ronaldo left the field in tears on a stretcher after suffering a knee injury against the host nation at the Stade de France.
Ronaldo had initially returned to the pitch following a crunching tackle from Dimitri Payet but Portugal s all-time leading goalscorer and most-capped player was unable to continue in Paris.
Portugal did manage to go on and beat France 1-0 after extra time thanks to Eder s goal, though the 31-year-old s heartbreaking exit understandably drew worldwide attention. We take a look at the best tributes here from his fellow star athletes.
Terrib…
Ederson says it is an honour to be a part of Pep Guardiola s Manchester City, though admitted the manager can be sometimes annoying .
The goalkeeper joined City in June 2017 and has since kept 113 clean sheets in 257 Premier League appearances, more than any other goalkeeper in the competition since his debut.
He has won 15 major trophies with City, including six Premier Leagues, two FA Cups and a Champions League title, as well as the UEFA Super Cup and Club World Cup under Guardiola.
While on international duty with Brazil, Ederson attended an event for Children s Day and was asked if Guardiola was nice, annoying or angry by one child.
You re going to get me in trouble, Ederson told ESPN Brasil. He s all three.
He s a nice guy, he s sometimes…
Reigning champions Italy and 2006 runners-up France can train their thoughts firmly on reaching the 2010 World Cup finals in South Africa if successful in qualifiers in the next few days.
France have a double-header against Lithuania on Saturday, away, and then on Wednesday in Paris, while Italy travel to Montenegro before a top-of-the-table clash against Republic of Ireland in Bari.
Coach Raymond Domenech, whose performance is still under the microscope from a demanding French media, leads his side in Kaunas on Saturday with the aim of shoring up their weakness in defence facing freekicks.
Central defender Philippe Mexes has battled back after his disastrous showing in the 3-1 defeat to Austria in September last year, when at fault in all three goals, and when …