Seven nations have booked their ticket already | RBL’s Austrian trio on the brink | Important game for Xavi

Who was the Bundesliga Player of the Month for September? VfB stars Serhou Guirassy and Chris Führich are among the nominees – and you can cast your vote!

“I had an incredibly wonderful time here at Union, so the decision to leave the club really wasn’t easy for me. Nevertheless, I see the opportunity at Bayer to take the next step in my development, and I would like to take advantage of this opportunity now. I’m very grateful to all those responsible for making this step possible for me and would like to expressly thank all fans, staff and those responsible once again for the past two years,” said the 26-year-old midfielder.

Maxence Lacroix has experienced highs and lows during his time at VfL Wolfsburg, but this season the French centre-back has blossomed into one of Niko Kovac’s key players and has yet to miss a single minute of action. The 23-year-old sat down with us to discuss VfL’s upcoming visit to Dortmund and his fine recent form.

The tendency to go for experience is certainly prevalent at the top clubs across Europe: Carlo Ancelotti (64) is in his second stint at Real Madrid, while Max Allegri (56, Juventus), Stefano Pioli (57, AC Milan) and Jose Mourinho (60, Roma) all have plenty of nous. Elsewhere, even names such as Mauricio Pochettino (51, Chelsea), Diego Simeone (53, Atletico Madrid) and Erik ten Hag (53, Man United), who are still considered on the rise, are 50-plus.

Wilder’s arrival continues the remarkable churn of managers at Watford under the ownership of the Pozzo family over the past decade.

The scenario: Less than 24 hours after their heart-wrenching defeat on penalties to Nykøbing in the semi-final on Saturday, Henk Groener’s team faced Thüringer HC in the game for third place. Club president Reinhold Lunow had come to Graz especially to support the team from the sidelines.

Several Borussia players called up for international matches Nine Foals have been called up to their...

Dawid Kownacki described his first Bundesliga start for SV Werder in the 4-0 win over FSV Mainz 05 as a “crazy day”. He began up front with Ducksch, taking over the second striker role after the departure of Niclas Füllkrug. “That was a great moment for me,” said the Pole three days later in the Mixed Zone. 

The reason for this is an outbreak of illness in the Franconian side’s camp.