October internationals: Bundesliga stars on international duty
A host of Bundesliga stars will on the plane with their national teams to the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia next summer, although there was heartbreak for Christian Pulisic and the USA.
Results
bundesliga.com rounds up all the international action, friendly and competitive, with German top-flight involvement in this international break...
WEDNESDAY 11 OCTOBER
2018 FIFA WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS - South America
Brazil 3-0 Chile
Bayer Leverkusen's Charles Aranguiz started for Chile in Sao Paulo, but he and his team suffered crushing disappointment, as their defeat, combined with results elsewhere, saw them finish sixth in qualifying, outside the play-off places. The Copa America champions of 2015 and 2016, for whom Bayern's Arturo Vidal was missing with injury, will now be absent from the World Cup.
Peru 1-1 Colombia
Bayern Munich midfielder James Rodriguez was on the scoresheet for Colombia while former Bayern and Hamburg striker Jose Paolo Guerrero equalised for Peru. The hosts thus finished in fifth and will face a play-off against New Zealand, while Colombia are guaranteed a spot at the World Cup after finishing fourth.
Paraguay 0-1 Venezuela
A late winner from bottom side Venezuela meant Paraguay missed out on qualification for the World Cup. Augsburg's Sergio Cordova played 58 minutes for the visitors.
2018 FIFA WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS - CENTRAL AMERICA
Trinidad and Tobago 2-1 USA
There was desperate disappointment for the USA, whose defeat in Trinidad, combined with results elsewhere in the CONCACAF section, saw them finish sixth and miss out on the World Cup altogether, despite a second-half Christian Pulisic goal.
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Honduras 3-2 Mexico
Mexico were already assured of their spot at the World Cup, while Honduras made the play-offs in fourth. Frankfurt's Carlos Salcedo was an unused substitute for the away side.
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TUESDAY 10 OCTOBER
2018 FIFA WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS - Europe
Group A
France 2-1 Belarus
Bayern Munich duo Corentin Tolisso and Kingsley Coman both started for France, who sealed their place at Russia 2018 as group winners thanks to a comfortable victory over Belarus in Paris.
Netherlands 2-0 Sweden
Bayern winger Arjen Robben scored twice as the Dutch gave it their best shot to leapfrog Sweden into the play-off position. Although the teams ended up level on 19 points as a result of the Netherlands' win, Emil Forsberg - who played throughout - and his Swedish team-mates sealed the runners-up spot. After the game, Robben announced his retirement from international football, having scored 37 times in 96 matches.
Group B
Hungary 1-0 Faroe Islands
RB Leipzig goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi was between the posts for the home team in a match where pride was all that was at stake for both teams. The custodian at least ended the campaign on a high note of sorts by keeping a clean sheet in a narrow victory.
Portugal 2-0 Switzerland
There was major disappointment for Switzerland, who had been top of the group for the entire campaign but must now go through the play-offs after slipping to defeat in Lisbon. Gladbach duo Yann Sommer and Denis Zakaria both featured alongside Schalke's Breel Embolo and Hoffenheim's Steven Zuber for the visitors, who earned 27 points from ten games but lost out to Portugal on goal difference. Cristiano Ronaldo failed to score, thus losing out to Bayern and Poland striker Robert Lewandowski at the top of the qualifying scoring charts.
Group H
Belgium 4-0 Cyprus
Gladbach attacker Thorgan Hazard started and scored for Belgium in a routine win at home to Cyprus to round out an undefeated qualifying campaign in which they eased to top spot in Group H.
Estonia 1-2 Bosnia-Herzegovina
Werder Bremen midfielder Izet Hajrovic struck a brace and Hertha Berlin striker Vedad Ibisevic started the match as the visitors secured a hard-earned win in Estonia. However, Greece's win over Gibraltar means Bosnia and Herzegovina will not be participating in a second consecutive World Cup.
Greece 4-0 Gibraltar
Greece's Bundesliga back line including Sokratis (Dortmund), Kyriakos Papadopoulos (Leverkusen) and Konstantinos Stafylidis (Augsburg) was given little trouble at home to Gibraltar, securing the Greeks second place in the group and a place in the play-offs.
2018 FIFA WORLD CUP play-off for 5th place - Asia
Australia 2-1 Syria AET (3-2 on aggregate)
Hertha Berlin's Mathew Leckie claimed an assist as Australia came from behind to beat Syria and reach the FIFA World Cup inter-confederation play-off. The Socceroos, who are aiming to reach the World Cup for the fifth time, now face a two-legged tie against a side from the Concacaf region as they bid to book their place at Russia 2018.
INTERNATIONAL FRIENDLIES
Japan 3-3 Haiti
Borussia Dortmund's Shinji Kagawa snatched a draw in the second minute of stoppage time in Japan's friendly with Haiti. Hamburg's Gotoku Sakai started and finished the game, while Kagawa, Hertha Berlin's Genki Haraguchi, Cologne's Yuya Osako and Mainz's Yoshinori Muto all came on from the bench in the second half.
Results
MONDAY 9 OCTOBER
2018 FIFA WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS - EUROPE
Group D
Moldova 0-1 Austria
A host of Bundesliga stars, including Philipp Leinhart, Julian Baumgartlinger and Guido Burgstaller, were on display for Austria, who rounded off their campaign with victory in Moldova. The Austrians ended up fourth in the Group D standings, behind Serbia, Republic of Ireland and Wales.
Serbia 1-0 Georgia
Hamburg winger Filip Kostic was a late substitute for the hosts, who recorded a 1-0 victory over Georgia to top the group and secure a place at next year's World Cup.
Group G
Albania 0-1 Italy
Hamburg defender Mergim Mavraj played the full 90 minutes for Albania in a match where nothing but pride was at stake for the hosts. Italy finished in second place in the group behind Spain.
Group I
Finland 2-2 Turkey
Bayer Leverkusen's Joel Pojahnpalo scored a late equaliser for Finland to rescue a point in what was a dead-rubber encounter, with neither side able to qualify. Eintracht Frankfurt's Lukas Hradecky was in goal for the hosts, while Dortmund's Ömer Toprak and Freiburg's Caglar Söyüncü played the full 90 minutes for Turkey.
Iceland 2-0 Kosovo
Augsburg striker Alfred Finnbogason was a 61st-minute substitute as Iceland sealed top spot in Group I to book a place at Russia 2018.
Ukraine 0-2 Croatia
Hoffenheim forward Andrej Kramaric hit a brace to help Croatia to a 2-0 triumph in an all-or-nothing clash away to Ukraine, meaning the visitors finished in second place in the group and could still qualify via the play-offs. Dortmund's Andrey Yarmolenko and Schalke's Yevheniy Konoplyanka were on the losing side and will not feature at the World Cup.
SUNDAY 8 OCTOBER
2018 FIFA WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS - EUROPE
Group C
Czech Republic 5-0 San Marino
Hoffenheim's Pavel Kaderabek played all 90 minutes as the Czech Republic eased to victory over minnows San Marino. The result mattered little in the end, however, as they finished in third place, four points adrift of Northern Ireland in second.
Germany 5-1 Azerbaijan
The reigning world champions turned on the style in the second half to ensure they finished their qualifying campaign with a perfect record of ten wins from as many games.
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Norway 1-0 Northern Ireland
Hoffenheim defender Havard Nordtveit went the distance for Norway in a 1-0 win over Northern Ireland, but the Scandinavians will not be taking part in Russia after finishing fourth on 13 points.
Group E
Denmark 1-1 Romania
Bremen midfielder Thomas Delaney and RB Leipzig forward Yussuf Poulsen both started for Denmark in a 1-1 draw at home to Romania as they finished up in second place behind group winners Poland.
Poland 4-2 Montenegro
Bayern's Robert Lewandowski scored a record-breaking 16th qualifying goal to help Poland to a 4-2 victory and seal a place at next year's World Cup. Dortmund's Lukasz Piszczek and Wolfsburg's Jakub Blaszczykowski also played for the hosts.
SATURDAY 7 OCTOBER
2018 FIFA WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS - CENTRAL AMERICA
USA 4-0 Panama
Borussia Dortmund's Christian Pulisic and Hamburg's Bobby Wood were both on target as the USA recorded a resounding win in Orlando. Click here for the full match report.
Mexico 3-1 Trinidad and Tobago
Eintracht Frankfurt's summer arrival Carlos Salcedo payed 90 minutes as Mexico, who had already qualified, beat Trinidad and Tobago.
2018 FIFA WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS - AFRICA
Group A
Guinea 1-4 Tunisia
RB Leipzig's Naby Keita opened the scoring for Guinea against Group A leaders Tunisia, but they were unable to hold on to the lead and eventually slipped to a 4-1 defeat, with Keita sent off in the closing stages.
Libya 1-2 DR Congo
Wolfsburg defender Marcel Tisserand helped DR Congo record a crucial victory away to Libya to keep their slim World Cup hopes alive. Tisserand and Co. can still finish top of the standings with a win in their final qualifier, but need leaders Tunisia to suffer a big defeat to bottom side Libya.
Group B
Cameroon 2-0 Algeria
Werder Bremen striker Ishak Belfodil was unable to prevent Algeria slipping to defeat in Cameroon, continuing a disappointing campaign from the North Africans, who have just one point to show from their five Group B matches to date.
Nigeria 1-0 Zambia
Mainz defender Leon Balogun went the distance for Nigeria in a narrow win over Zambia to help the Super Eagles become the first African country to qualify for Russia 18. Six points clear at the top of Group B and with just one game left to play, Nigera can no longer be caught.
Group C
Morocco 3-0 Gabon
Borussia Dortmund forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang played from start to finish for Gabon but even his extensive talents were unable to help his side in Morocco, meaning the BVB forward will definitely play no part at next year's tournament. For the hosts, Schalke's Amine Harit made his international debut as a late substitute.
Group E
Uganda 0-0 Ghana
Augsburg defender Daniel Opare played from start to finish for Ghana earning a draw away to Uganda. The point was not much use, however, as the Black Stars remain in third place in the group, behind Uganda and leaders Egypt.
2018 FIFA WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS - EUROPE
Group A
Sweden 8-0 Luxembourg
RB Leipzig attacker Emil Forsberg and Werder Bremen defender Ludwig Augstinsson both played from start to finish as Sweden smashed Luxembourg to keep their World Cup qualifying hopes alive.
Belarus 1-3 Netherlands
Bayern Munich winger Arjen Robben helped the Netherlands pick up a crucial win in Belarus, scoring from the penalty spot in a 3-1 triumph that gives the Oranje a glimmer of hope of reaching Russia 2018. However, to do so they will have to beat Sweden by a huge margin in order to pip them to the play-off spot in second place.
Bulgaria 0-1 France
Bayern midfielder Corentin Tolisso played every minute of France's vital win in Bulgaria that saw them return to the top of the standings. A win at home to second-bottom Belarus in their final outing would seal a World Cup berth for Les Bleus.
Group B
Switzerland 5-2 Hungary
It was a night to forget for Leipzig's Hungarian goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi, who gifted the hosts their opening goal as Switzerland romped to their ninth qualifying win in as many games. Hoffenheim's Steven Zuber scored twice, while Yann Sommer, Denis Zakaria (both Gladbach) and Breel Embolo (Schalke) also appeared for the victors.
Group H
Bosnia-Herzegovina 3-4 Belgium
Bremen's Izet Hajrovic and Hertha Berlin striker Vedad Ibisevic both came on as late substitutes for Bosnia, but they were unable to salvage a point against group leaders Belgium, who had already qualified for the tournament. Gladbach attacker Thorgan Hazard was an unused substitute for the Belgians.
Cyprus 1-2 Greece
Dortmund defender Sokratis and Augsburg's Kostas Stafylidis both played the 90 minutes as Greece moved into second place above Bosnia and Herzegovina. A win at home to Gibraltar in their last qualifier should be enough for a play-off spot.
FRIDAY 6 OCTOBER
2018 FIFA WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS - SOUTH AMERICA
Chile 2-1 Ecuador
Bayern Munich's Arturo Vidal played all 90 minutes of Chile's crucial win over Ecuador, which keeps their World Cup hopes alive.
Colombia 1-2 Paraguay
Bayern Munich's James Rodriguez was helpless to stop his national side suffering a shock defeat to Paraguay leaving their World Cup hopes on a knife-edge with just one match to play.
INTERNATIONAL FRIENDLY
Japan 2-1 New Zealand
Cologne's Yuya Osako scored a penalty as a Japan team with three Bundesliga stars: Borussia Dortmund's Shinji Kagawa and Mainz's Yoshinori Muto also starting beat New Zealand in a friendly. Hertha Berlin's Genki Haraguchi and Hamburg's Gotoku Sakai were unused substitutes.
2018 FIFA WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS - EUROPE
Group D
Austria 3-2 Serbia
Schalke striker Guido Burgstaller was on target for Austria, while a number of other Bundesliga stars including Julian Baumgartlinger and Stefan Ilsanker also started, as the Austrians look to bow out of their qualifying campaign on a high note, despite failing to reach Russia 2018.
Group G
Spain 3-0 Albania
Bayern Munich midfielder Thiago played from start to finish for Spain, and also found the net as the 2010 World Cup winners booked their place at next year's tournament as Group G winners.
Group I
Croatia 1-1 Finland
Hoffenheim striker Andrej Kramaric took to the field for Croatia but was unable to help his side secure a victory that would have edged them closer to qualification. Eintracht Frankfurt's Lukas Hradecky, Werder Bremen's Niklas Moisander and Bayer Leverkusen's Joel Pohjanpalo all played the full 90 minutes for Finland.
Kosovo 0-2 Ukraine
Borussia Dortmund attacker Andrey Yarmolenko scored as the Ukraine kept their qualifying hopes alive with a 2-0 win in Kosovo. Schalke's Yevheniy Konoplyanka also began as the visitors pulled level on 17 points with second-placed Croatia, setting up what will be a thrilling head-to-head duel in the teams' final game.
Turkey 0-3 Iceland
Augsburg striker Alfred Finnbogason was among the starters as Iceland pulled off a huge upset away to Turkey to take a huge step towards Russia 2018. The hosts, who fielded Borussia Dortmund's Nuri Sahin and Wolfsburg's Yunus Malli as a substitute, had no answer to their guests, who sit top of Group I, needing just a point at home to bottom side Kosovo in their final qualifier to seal the deal.
THURSDAY 5 OCTOBER
2018 FIFA WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS - ASIA
Syria 1-1 Australia
Hertha Berlin's Mathew Leckie created Australia's opener, his cross finding Bochum forward Robbie Kruse, but the Socceroos were pegged back late on and have work to do to reach Russia.
2018 FIFA WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS - EUROPE
Group C
Azerbaijan 1-2 Czech Republic
Hoffenheim's Pavel Kaderabek and Hertha Berlin's Vladimir Darida were both starters as the Czech Republic came out narrow winners in Baku. Neither side had any hope of qualifying for Russia next year.
Northern Ireland 1-3 Germany
Bayern Munich pair Sebastian Rudy and Joshua Kimmich found the net in Belfast, as did Hoffenheim's Sandro Wagner, as Germany booked their place in Russia. Click here for the match report.
San Marino 0-8 Norway
Hoffenheim's Havard Nordveit was largely a spectator in defence as Norway cruised to victory in San Marino.
Group E
Armenia 1-6 Poland
Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski hit a hat-trick in Poland's comfortable win, a triumph that moved them closer to appearing in Russia. Wolfsburg's Jakub Blaszczykowski also found the net, while Borussia Dortmund's Lukasz Piszczek set up his nation's opener.
Montenegro 0-1 Denmark
Denmark remain in with a chance of qualification thanks to a fine, battling win in Podgorica. Werder Bremen's Thomas Delaney and RB Leipzig's Yussuf Poulsen both played 90 minutes.
Group F
Scotland 1-0 Slovakia
Hertha Berlin's Peter Pekarik was a starter with club-mate Ondrej Duda coming off the bench as Slovakia's World Cup hopes suffered a major blow with defeat in Glasgow.
2018 FIFA WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS - SOUTH AMERICA
Venezuela 0-0 Uruguay
Augsburg's Sergio Cordova played 80 minutes of Venezuela's goalless draw with Uruguay, and will finish bottom of the South American qualifying group.
Bundesliga stars on international duty
Bold indicates that player's nation has qualified for the tournament
BORUSSIA DORTMUND
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Gabon), Marc Bartra (Spain), Shinji Kagawa (Japan), Lukasz Piszczek (Poland), Christian Pulisic (USA), Nuri Sahin, Ömer Toprak (both Turkey), Sokratis (Greece), Andrey Yarmolenko (Ukraine), Mahmoud Dahoud (Germany U21), Jacob Bruun Larsen (Denmark U21), Alexander Isak (Sweden U21), Dan-Axel Zagadou (France U19), Jadon Sancho (England U17)
BAYERN MUNICH
Thomas Müller, Jerome Boateng, Mats Hummels, Joshua Kimmich, Sebastian Rudy, Niklas Süle (all Germany), Arturo Vidal (Chile), Arjen Robben (Netherlands), Robert Lewandowski (Poland), James Rodriguez (Colombia), Thiago (Spain), Kingsley Coman, Corentin Tolisso (both France), Marco Friedl (Austria U21)
HOFFENHEIM
Sandro Wagner (Germany), Florian Grillitsch (Austria), Havard Nordtveit (Norway), Andrej Kramaric (Croatia), Steven Zuber (Switzerland), Pavel Kaderabek (Czech Republic), Philipp Ochs, Felix Passlack (both Germany U21), Meris Skenderovic (Montenegro (U21), Stefan Posch (Austria U21), Gregor Kobel (Swizterland U21), Justin Hoogma (Netherlands U20)
RB LEIPZIG
Emil Forsberg (Sweden), Naby Keita (Guinea), Stefan Ilsanker (Austria), Yussuf Poulsen (Denmark), Peter Gulacsi (Hungary), Yvon Mvogo (Switzerland), Lukas Klostermann (Germany U21), Konrad Laimer (Austria U21), Philipp Köhn (Switzerland U20)
HANNOVER 96
Salif Sane (Senegal), Ihlas Bebou (Togo), Charlison Benschop (Curaçao), Waldemar Anton (Germany U21), Iver Fossum (Norway U21)
AUGSBURG
Daniel Opare (Ghana), Ja-Cheol Koo, Dong-Won Ji (both South Korea), Sergio Cordova (Venezuela), Alfred Finnbogason (Iceland), Martin Hinteregger, Michael Gregoritsch, Kevin Danso (all Austria), Marwin Hitz (Switzerland), Konstantinos Stafylidis (Greece)
BORUSSIA MÖNCHENGLADBACH
Matthias Ginter, Lars Stindl (both Germany), Yann Sommer, Nico Elvedi, Denis Zakaria (all Switzerland), Yannik Vestergaard (Denmark), Thorgen Hazard (Belgium), Reece Oxford (England U20), Mickael Cuisance (France U19)
EINTRACHT FRANKFURT
Lukas Hradecky (Finland), Carlos Salcedo (Mexico), Mijat Gacinovic (Serbia), Renat Dadashov (Azerbaijan), Luka Jovic (Serbia U21), Aymen Barkok (Germany U20)
SCHALKE
Leon Goretzka (Germany), Guido Burgstaller (Austria), Matija Nastasic (Serbia), Breel Embolo (Switzerland), Yevhen Konoplyanka (Ukraine), Donis Avdijaj (Kosovo), Amine Harit (Morocco), Thilo Kehrer, Alexander Nübel (both Germany U21)
HERTHA BERLIN
Marvin Plattenhardt (Germany), Rune Jarstein (Norway), Vladimir Darida (Czech Republic), Peter Pekarik, Ondrej Duda (both Slovakia), Vedad Ibisevic (Bosnia-Herzegovina), Karim Rekik (Netherlands), Valentin Stocker (Switzerland), Valentino Lazaro (Austria), Mathew Leckie (Australia), Genki Haraguchi (Japan), Salomon Kalou (Ivory Coast), Florian Baak, Arne Maier (both Germany U19), Jordan Torunarigha (Germany U20)
BAYER LEVERKUSEN
Bernd Leno, Julian Brandt (both Germany), Admir Mehmedi (Switzerland), Julin Baumgartlinger (Austria), Joel Pohjanpalo (Finland), Panagiotis Retsos (Greece), Benjamin Henrichs, Jonathan Tah (both Germany U21), Kai Havertz (Germany U19)
WOLFSBURG
Koen Casteels, Divock Origi (Belgium), Jakub Blaszczykowski (Poland), Yunus Malli (Turkey), Marcel Tisserand (DR Congo), Riechedly Bazoer (Netherlands U21), Nany Landry Dimata (Belgium U21), Phillip Menzel (Germany U20), Gian-Luca Itter (Germany U19)
MAINZ
Leon Balogun (Nigeria), Jean-Philippe Gbamin (Ivory Coast), Viktor Fischer (Denmark), Fabian Frei (Switzerland), Kenan Kodro (Bosnia-Herzegovina), Yoshinori Muto (Japan), Levin Öztunali (Germany U21), Abdou Diallo (France U21)
STUTTGART
Takuma Asano (Japan), Marcin Kaminski (Poland), Ebenezer Ofori (Ghana), Chadrac Akolo (DR Congo), Anastasios Donis (Greece), Timo Baumgartl (Germany U21), Benjamin Pavard (France U21), Josip Brekalo (Croatia U21), Anto Grgic (Switzerland U21), Orel Mangala (Belgium U21), Berkay Özcan (Turkey U21), Dzenis Burnic (Germany U20)
FREIBURG
Philipp Liehart (Austria), Caglar Söyüncü (Turkey), Pascal Stenzel (Germany U21), Bartosz Kapustka (Poland U21)
HAMBURG
Albin Ekdal (Sweden), Kyriakos Papadopoulos (Greece), Mergim Mavraj (Albania), Filip Kostic (Serbia), Sejad Salihovic (Bosnia-Herzegovina), Bobby Wood (USA), Gotoku Sakai (Japan), Luca Waldschmidt (Germany U21), Vasilije Janjicic (Swizterland U20), Fiete Arp (Germany U17)
WERDER BREMEN
Ludwig Augustinsson (Sweden), Ishak Belfodil (Algeria), Thomas Delaney (Denmark), Izet Hajrovic (Bosnia-Herzegovina), Florian Kainz (Austria), Niklas Moisander (Finland), Jiri Pavlenka (Czech Republic), Milos Veljkovic (Serbia), Maximilian and Johannes Eggestein (both Germany U21), Ulisses Garcia (Switzerland U21)
COLOGNE
Yuya Osako (Japan), Konstantin Rausch (Russia), Jorge Mere (Spain U21), Salih Özcan (Germany U20), Joao Queiros (Portugal U20)