Bundesliga
LEON BALOGUN SEEKS RETURN TO BUNDESLIGA
Super Eagles and FC Rangers centre-back, Leon Balogun, has said that he is open to returning to Germany, although he would like to continue his stay with his Scottish Premiership club.
The defender teamed up with the Gers last summer after leaving Wigan Athletic, signing a one-year contract with an option of a one-year extension.
Balogun has spent most of his career in Germany, playing for Turkiyemspor Berlin, Hannover 96, Werder Bremen, Fortuna Dusseldorf, Darmstadt 98 and Mainz 05 before moving to England in 2018 to join Brighton and Hove Albion.
The 32-year-old has stated he would consider returning to Germany, where his family is based, after ending his stay with Rangers.
It’s just a matter of form, I don’t have to worry about that – I definitely want to stay [at Rangers],” Balogun told Bild.
“Germany is my Home. I sacrificed so many moments with my family in order to pursue my career. If there was a chance to get closer to them again, I would listen to it.”
Balogun has been delivering impressive performances for Steven Gerrard’s men, having already featured in 28 appearances across all competitions.
His contributions helped the Ibrox Stadium outfit clinch their 55th Scottish Premiership title and he is delighted with his decision to team up with the club.
“When my advisor called me a year ago, he immediately said: ‘I have one thing here that is huge for you: the Rangers’,” he continued.
“At first, I thought: Scottish League, well. But then I felt Steven Gerrard’s interest. I don’t mean to say that he chased me. But he really went out of his way to help me.
“I felt that he wanted me as a player, as a guy, as Leon Balogun. He said I was a perfect match for his game idea and the identity of the club. With every word, he convinced me even more.
“The goal was very clear that we had to win the title. Draws felt like defeat to us. You could feel the team’s mentality there.”
Balogun also revealed Gerrard as a very good manager and compared him to Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp.
“He’s definitely more like Klopp! He is a young coach who you can tell immediately that he played at the highest level himself and he has a very good sense of how to deal with us,” he added.
“Whether someone needs a kick in the ass or whether he has to take someone aside and build him up. He has a lot of empathy.
“He doesn’t need that at all [to get loud when something doesn’t suit him]. He hits the right words in every situation and knows how to grab us. That is the art. Every player feels: the coach needs me.
“That is one reason why it will be successful in the long run. He just understands that you have to have your players all on board. And every now and then he lets you glimpse how he was as a player.”
Balogun will be expected to continue his consistent performances when Rangers take on Hibernian in a league game on April 11.
Bayer Leverkusen kept pace with Bundesliga leader Bayern Munich by beating Hoffenheim 3-1 on Sunday with goals from Victor Boniface, Patrik Schick and Jeremie Frimpong.
Leverkusen finished with 10 players after Álex Grimaldo’s sending off with half an hour to play. New signings Emiliano Buendía and Mario Hermoso made their debuts as Xabi Alonso’s team stayed six points behind Bayern two weeks before the top two clash in Leverkusen.
Bayern defeated Holstein Kiel on Saturday.
Boniface scored with his first shot at goal since his proposed move to Saudi team Al-Nassr collapsed. The Nigeria forward started for his first game since early November after recovering from a thigh injury, and he scored in the 15th minute with a shot that Hoffenheim ’keeper Luca Philipp should arguably have stopped.
Frimpong made it 2-0 four minutes later after Aleix García sent the Dutch wing back through.
Then Robin Braun became the first referee to announce a VAR call to fans in a Bundesliga game when a penalty he awarded to Nathan Tella for a foul by Hoffenheim defender David Jurasek was taken back — video replays showed the Leverkusen attacker was coming from an offside position before he was fouled.
Leverkusen’s match was among five in the 20th round trialling the NFL-style announcements, a change league officials hope will make the much-maligned VAR system more popular among fans.
Buendía went on for the injured Tella to make his Bundesliga debut before the break, and Schick went on for Boniface after it.
Buendía surged through the Hoffenheim defence only to see his shot saved by Philipp, but Schick was there to tuck away the rebound for 3-0 in the 51st. It was the Czech forward’s 14th league goal of the season.
Then Grimaldo was shown red in the 61st when Hoffenheim substitute Gift Orban went on for the visitors. Orban pulled a goal back a minute later.
Buendía made way for Hermoso to compensate for Grimaldo’s sending off. Though tempers flared at times, Leverkusen’s 10 men contained the visitors for the rest of the game.
Third-placed Eintracht Frankfurt drew with Wolfsburg 1-1 in the early game.
-AFP
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Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso said Victor Boniface will remain at the Bundesliga club, after the Nigerian striker was left out of their Champions League clash with Sparta Prague amid rumours of a move to Saudi Arabia.
Boniface returned from injury on Saturday but was on the bench for Leverkusen’s 2-2 draw with RB Leipzig after German media reports linked him with a transfer to Saudi club Al-Nassr.
He was then left out of training ahead of Leverkusen’s 2-0 Champions League win over Czech side Sparta Prague on Wednesday.
“He will train again tomorrow. I believe he is staying with us,” Alonso told reporters after that win.
“So I have to say that I am satisfied, I am happy. He is comfortable here, so I don’t believe that this is a big stress for him.”
The 24-year-old has scored eight goals in 15 games in all competitions. Last season, he netted 14 goals in 23 league appearances to finish as their top scorer and played a pivotal role in securing Leverkusen’s first Bundesliga title.
Boniface staying at Leverkusen could open the doors for Aston Villa’s Jhon Duran to join Al-Nassr instead.
The Colombian forward is also a reported target for the Saudi club, who are looking to bolster a frontline that already features Cristiano Ronaldo and Sadio Mane.
-Reuters
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Bundesliga
Leverkusen sidelines Boniface at training session over transfer issues with Ronaldo’s club
Bayer Leverkusen’s Victor Boniface was left out of training on Tuesday as German media reports linked the striker with a move to Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr, with manager Xabi Alonso saying negotiations for the player’s transfer were ongoing.
If the transfer materialises, Boniface will be a teammate of Cristiano Ronaldo.
The 24-year-old Boniface returned from injury on Saturday but was on the bench for Leverkusen’s 2-2 draw with RB Leipzig in the Bundesliga.
Before his injury in November, he had scored eight goals in 15 games in all competitions. Last season, he netted 14 goals in 23 league appearances to finish as their top scorer and played a pivotal role in securing Leverkusen’s first Bundesliga title.
“The situation with (Boniface) does exist. Negotiations are ongoing with the club, so we have to wait. Our preparation for the match remains the same,” Alonso told reporters ahead of the Champions League clash against Sparta Prague on Wednesday.
“We prepared (for the game) without Boni, of course. We still have to wait a little longer to see (how the situation unfolds),” the Spanish coach added.
“After Jeanu (Belocian) and Martin (Terrier) injuries we already said that we need to be active in the transfer window. Three days remain and we are so close (to a decision).
“I am and I will be happy with the squad (regardless). Until now, all players feel that they are ready and they are an important part of the team.”
Defender Belocian suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury at the start of the year and winger Terrier sustained an Achilles tendon rupture last week.
Leverkusen, eighth in the Champions League standings on 13 points, have already booked at least a knockout stage playoff spot while Sparta Prague, with four points from seven games, have been eliminated.
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