A goal by Germany striker Gerald Asamoah launched Schalke 04’s 3-0 win over VfL Bochum on Tuesday to put the Royal Blues second in the Bundesliga and seal their Champions League berth next season.
Bayern Munich were confirmed as German League champions last Sunday, but with two games left Schalke are almost certain to finish in the league’s top three.
Asamoah’s 34th-minute header gave Schalke the lead before Croatian midfielder Ivan Rakitic put the result beyond doubt when he netted on 67 minutes and captain Marcelo Bordon added a late third with a header.
But rivals Werder Bremen had the chance to regain second in the league when they take on Hamburg in the north Germany derby last night.
“We wanted to win our last three games to put Bremen under pressure. So three points were a must in Bochum,” caretaker manager Mike Bueskens said.
“We are very pleased, but there is still plenty of soccer left this season,” Bueskens said.
Hanover 96 kept alive their slim dream of a top five finish which will give them a place in Europe next season with a 3-0 win over Hansa Rostock on Tuesday.
Two second-half goals by midfielder Jan Rosenthal sealed the win which put Hansa Rostock bottom of the table and all but relegated after just one season in the Bundesliga.
Hansa are now five points away from safety and have just two more games to claw their way out of trouble.
VfB Stuttgart’s chances of a Champions League place next season are all but over after their 3-2 defeat at Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday when Switzerland striker Alexander Frei hit two second-half goals.
With just two games left, last year’s Bundesliga champions are six points off a Champions League berth.
Germany striker Mario Gomez — set to be one of the stars of next month’s Euro 2008 — grabbed two second-half goals for Stuttgart, but it was not enough to prevent Dortmund taking the three points.
Frei put his side ahead on 59 minutes with a direct free-kick and then made the result safe by slotting home a cross on 78 minutes which proved to be the winner.
Energie Cottbus picked up a valuable point with their 1-1 draw against Karlsruhe to leave them four points clear of the relegation zone.
Last night, champions Bayern Munich were to take on Arminia Bielefeld at Munich’s Allianz Arena determined to add to their nine point lead at the top of the table.
“We have three games left, and we want to enjoy ourselves for the rest of the season,” Franck Ribery said.
The French midfielder is set to return along with Lucio, Zi Roberto and captain Oliver Kahn, after the quartet missed out on Sunday’s trip to Wolfsburg where a 0-0 draw confirmed Bayern as champions.
Also yesterday, Bayer Leverkusen, who are just outside the top five and are desperately chasing a place in Europe next season, were to host Hertha Berlin as mid-table sides Eintracht Frankfurt and VfL Wolfsburg battle it out.
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Taiwanese judoka Yang Yung-wei on Saturday won silver in the men’s under-60kg category at the Asian Judo Championships in Hong Kong. Nicknamed the “judo heartthrob” in Taiwan, the Olympic silver-medalist missed out on his first Asian Championships gold when he lost to Japanese judoka Taiki Nakamura in the finals. Yang defeated three opponents on Saturday to reach the final after receiving a bye through the round of 32. He first topped Laotian Soukphaxay Sithisane in the round of 16 with two seoi nage (over-the-shoulder throws), then ousted Indian Vijay Kumar Yadav in the quarter-finals with his signature ude hishigi sankaku gatame (triangular armlock). He
Rafael Nadal on Wednesday said the upcoming French Open would be the moment to “give everything and die” on the court after his comeback from injury in Barcelona was curtailed by Alex de Minaur. The 22-time Grand Slam title winner, back playing this week after three months on the sidelines, battled well, but eventually crumbled 7-5, 6-1 against the world No. 11 from Australia in the second round. Nadal, 37, who missed virtually all of last season, is hoping to compete at the French Open next month where he is the record 14-time champion. The Spaniard said the clash with De Minaur was
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