Club

“The first half in the first leg was difficult, but then the second was very good. We were maybe a bit surprised at the start. We analyzed them well and want to play two strong halves tomorrow,” said De Ligt (as captured by @iMiaSanMia). “Barcelona is a big club, like Bayern. They played a very good first half in the first leg. They have a good philosophy, lots of possession. For every player it’s a game where you need maximum concentration. We want to be first in the group, so we have to win.”

The task of playing a match every three or four days in either the Bundesliga, DFB...

Borussia will be looking to right two wrongs on the weekend. Not only are Daniel Farke’s side coming off the back of a painful 4-0 defeat in Mainz last time out, but they will also be hoping to get revenge for the 6-0 drubbing handed out by SC in their last trip to Borussia-Park. The Breisgauer had torn Gladbach to pieces inside 37 minutes on matchday 21 last season, recording their first three points in Mönchengladbach since 1995 and the biggest Bundesliga victory in the club’s history. “It’s good to finally have that win there under our belts. I’ve still never headed to Mönchengladbach with a bad feeling though. Even before the 6-0 win, we often had really good and closely fought encounters,” explained Streich.

As 2022 comes to an end, 2023 is just around the corner. The last 12 months were as intense as they were moving. “Behind us is a year in Blue and White with a lot of challenges for our club, and not just from a sporting perspective. The most important moment was definitely winning the relegation play-off and managing to stay in the league,” said Kay Bernstein, looking back at the first half of the year.

A good deed together: As a show of support for the people in the earthquake zone in Türkiye and Syria, TSG Hoffenheim is asking for donations to “Aktion Deutschland Hilft”. The alliance of German aid organisations is collecting money for the victims of the awful natural disaster. Any small amount will help make a difference and help out.

The scenario: TSG went into the match in 14th place in the table with 19 points...

From the fourth division to the Champions League | Returning to the Red Bull Arena 3,885 days after first arriving in Leipzig

Mainz suffered their first defeat of the season at the hands of Leverkusen on Saturday afternoon. Despite a strong start to the game, the 28,500 fans inside the MEWA ARENA were stunned as their team went into the dressing room 3-0 down at the break. Leverkusen’s devastating and clinical counter-attacking football in the final ten minutes of the first half, along with goals from Exequiel Palacios (29’) and Jeremy Frimpong (39’, 41’), broke the back of the match and put the guests in a commanding position. Mainz showed fighting spirit in the second half but they ultimately failed to convert their many chances into goals.

Bruno Labbadia gives his thoughts on the away match at FC Schalke 04 at 18:30 CET on Saturday.

“Because of the amount of away games we have in the coming weeks, it’s good to be able to play at home”, said Oliver Ruhnert, Union’s Director of Professional Football on the draw. “We know Heidenheim well, they’ve had the same trainer for a long time, and are a top team in the second division. They’re a good opponent, and we’ll have to be very focussed.”