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Bayer Leverkusen on Monday appointed Dane Kasper Hjulmand as coach, replacing Erik ten Hag, who was fired after just two league games in charge.

The former Denmark coach has been appointed on a contract until 2027.

“It is an honour to be entrusted with such a team,” Hjulmand said in a statement, adding that he is “motivated to shape the future of the club”.

The appointment ends a chaotic fortnight for Leverkusen, who sacked former Manchester United manager Ten Hag on September 1, just two games into the Bundesliga season.

Ten Hag replaced Xabi Alonso, who took Leverkusen to an unbeaten league and cup double in 2023-24 — the club’s first-ever Bundesliga title — before moving to Real Madrid in the summer.

READ ALSO: Leverkusen Sack Erik Ten Hag After Two League Matches

Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes admitted to an error in hiring Ten Hag but said letting him continue would have been “an even bigger mistake”.

Runners-up last season, Leverkusen collected just one point from their opening two matches.

“Unprecedented” Sacking

Ten Hag hit back in a statement, calling the sacking “unprecedented” and “a complete surprise”.

Hjulmand is expected to be on the bench for Leverkusen’s home match against Eintracht Frankfurt on Friday.

Hjulmand emerged as one of several candidates to take over the vacant position, alongside one-time Barcelona coach and player Xavi, former Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou, and Raul, the Spanish striker who recently coached Real Madrid’s second team.

Ex-Denmark Coach

The 53-year-old resigned as Denmark coach in July 2024, having taken the side to the semi-finals of the Euros in 2021, where they narrowly lost to England.

He also took Denmark to the last 16 of Euro 2024, where they were eliminated by hosts Germany.

Rolfes said Monday the new manager would “set up a clear and dominant style of play with our team” and would “strive for the most ambitious national and international goals”.

The manager took Nordsjaelland to their first and only Danish title in 2011-12.

Hjulmand has experience in Germany, having coached Bundesliga side Mainz for just under one season in 2014-15, but was sacked after a run of one win in 13 games.

After Friday’s match against Frankfurt, Leverkusen kick off their Champions League campaign with a trip to Danish champions Copenhagen.

Ten Hag’s Journey

Fired by Manchester United last October, Ten Hag joined Leverkusen as the successor to Xabi Alonso, who moved to Real Madrid.

“This decision was not easy for us. Nobody wanted to take this step,” sporting director Simon Rolfes said in a statement.

“The past few weeks have shown that the steps to build a new and successful team have not been effective,” Rolfes said.

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Club CEO Fernando Carro said the decision was “painful, but necessary”.

The sacking means the 55-year-old Dutchman now has the unwanted record of being the coach to be fired so early into a Bundesliga season, breaking the previous mark of five matches.

Named United manager in July 2022, Ten Hag won the FA and League Cups but was let go after a run of just one win in eight matches midway through the 2024-25 season, the club’s worst start to a campaign in the Premier League era.

Taking over after the most successful period in Leverkusen’s history, with an unbeaten league and cup double in 2023-24, including the first Bundesliga title in the club’s 120-year history, Ten Hag was tasked with overseeing a dramatic rebuild.

Exodus Of Players

Leverkusen lost several core members of the team this summer, including Florian Wirtz, Granit Xhaka, Jonathan Tah, Jeremie Frimpong, Amine Adli and Lukas Hradecky.

 The club did not name a replacement for Ten Hag, saying the “training work would be taken over by the assistant coaching staff for the time being”.

Named Leverkusen manager on July 1, Ten Hag’s first match in charge was a 5-1 drubbing by Flamengo’s under-20s team in a friendly in Brazil.

After a 4-0 win over fourth-tier Sonnenhof Grossaspach in their German Cup opener, Leverkusen claimed one point from their first two Bundesliga fixtures.

Leverkusen let a one-goal lead slip to lose 2-1 at home to Hoffenheim, and on Saturday conceded two late goals against a 10-man Werder Bremen to draw 3-3, having led 2-0 and 3-1.

On Sunday, German outlets Bild and Kicker both reported Ten Hag was facing the sack, despite his short tenure at the club.

Ten Hag was tasked with bedding in more than a dozen new signings ahead of this season, including several young players.

The three most expensive signings in the club’s history — Malik Tilmann, Jarell Quansah, and Eliesse Ben Seghir — all arrived this summer, for a combined cost of 102 million euros ($120 million) plus bonuses.

Mohamed Ben Romdhane scored in added time to give Tunisia a 1-0 win in Equatorial Guinea on Monday and qualification for the 2026 World Cup in North America.

Victory for Tunisia gave them an unassailable lead in Group H and they become the second African nation to secure a place at the tournament after Morocco.

Tunisia have 22 points from eight matches, 10 more than second-placed Namibia, who have one match in hand but cannot match the total of the Carthage Eagles.

Ben Romdhane, a midfielder with Egyptian and African club giants Al Ahly, struck in the 94th minute after being set up by Firas Chaouat.

READ ALSO: Athletic Bilbao Defender Alvarez Given 10-Month Doping Ban

Tunisia started the match in Malabo with players based in nine countries, including Hannibal Mejbri from Premier League outfit Burnley.

The Eagles are coached by former defender Sami Trabelsi, who captained Tunisia at the 1998 World Cup in France.

In other early matches, Morocco maintained a 100 percent record in Group E by winning 2-0 in Zambia through goals from Youssef en Nesyri and Hamza Igamane.

Athletic Bilbao defender Yeray Alvarez has been hit with a 10-month ban after testing positive for a prohibited substance following a Europa League clash against Manchester United last season, European football’s governing body UEFA said on Monday.

Analysis of a sample provided by the player after the game in May “revealed the presence of Canrenone”, a substance banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency, UEFA said.

UEFA acknowledged that the 30-year-old took the substance “involuntarily”, with Alvarez saying it been through medicine he was using to combat hair loss following treatment for testicular cancer.

READ ALSO: Super Spain Hit Six As Germany Get First World Cup Qualifying Win

However, he was banned for 10 months, with the start backdated to June when he had accepted a voluntary provisional suspension.

That means Alvarez will be able to return to action at the start of April next year, albeit he will be allowed to return to training with his teammates two months before that.

Alvarez was diagnosed with testicular cancer in 2016 and after treatment returned to play in 2017, but suffered a reoccurrence later that year, making a second comeback in 2018.

His positive test came after Athletic’s 3-0 home defeat by United in the Europa League semi-final first leg on May 1.

The news of his ban is a major blow to the Basque club, who will take part in this season’s Champions League.

It comes after a move to bring Spain centre-back Aymeric Laporte back to the club for a second spell from Saudi side Al-Nassr fell through late in the transfer window.

A majestic Spain thrashed Turkey 6-0 away in World Cup qualifying on Sunday, and Mikkel Merino scored a hat-trick, and Germany defeated Northern Ireland 3-1 to start their bid.

As a result of Arsenal’s midfielder Merino’s first professional hat-trick, World Cup champions Spain won their second biggest-ever away win in Konya, taking the title in the central Turkish city of Konya.

Ferran Torres scored the visitors’ other goal after the Barcelona playmaker Pedri Gonzalez opened the scoring after six minutes and finished the scoring.

Merino’s strikes were exceptional, with his best one coming after a strong team move and his best second coming after a confident finish with a Pedri assist. A curling shot into the top corner by him was the third and final part of his triple.

Nico Williams’ withdrawal from the Spanish team’s performance on the night was the only minor issue, but Luis de la Fuente’s team are already top of Group E with six points from two games.

ALCAraz defeats Sinner to win the US Open and wins the title. 1 Position

The first hat-trick of my career came from Merino, who said, “I’m very happy for winning, to pick up six points, to do it in this way, and to score three goals, which is unusual.”

The group winners will advance to the play-off stage while the runners-up will advance to the finals.

Georgia and Turkey share the lead with three points, with the latter scoring twice in Tbilisi on the heels of goals from Georges Mikautadze, Nika Gagnidze, and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, the latter of whom defeated Bulgaria 3-3.

After falling to Slovakia on Thursday to win their opening qualifier, Germany was under pressure, and it didn’t get there until the final quarter of their home match against Northern Ireland in Cologne.

Before half-time, West Bromwich Albion’s Isaac Price scored an equalizer for the hosts after Serge Gnabry gave them an early lead.

The home fans’ dissatisfied with Julian Nagelsmann’s team, but David Raum’s cross was finally turned in by substitute Nadiem Amiri on 69 minutes.

Liverpool’s star, playing in his hometown, then took the lead with a stylish free kick to seal Germany’s first Group A victory.

Wirtz told Germany’s RTL network, “We knew it was a catastrophe (in the) last game and we wanted to do things better.

We can definitely build on it because it was a strong performance.

After Tomas Rigo’s late goal earned them a 1-0 victory in Luxembourg, they both now have three points, while Slovakia leads the way with six.

Depay is a historical moment in Dutch history.

Memphis Depay’s double earned him a career-high two goals in the Netherlands’ 3-2 victory over Lithuania in Group G.

Depay, who is currently playing for Corinthians in Brazil, scored his 51st and 52nd international goals to move clear of Robin van Persie, who had shared first place with him in the Oranje on the opening half-century of goals.

Before Quinten Timber netted the second goal for the Netherlands in Kaunas, the 31-year-old turned in Cody Gakpo’s cutback for the opener.

Before the break, Edvinas Girdvainis headed home the equalizer for the team that was 143rd in the world after Gvidas Gineitis pulled one back and pulled one back for them.

Depay, however, saved the Netherlands by crossing a Denzel Dumfries cross just before the hour mark.

With a game in hand, Ronald Koeman’s side are now 10 points ahead of Poland in terms of goal difference and have ten points after four games.

Matty Cash, captain Robert Lewandowski, and Jakub Kaminski scored for Poland in Chorzow, where they lost 3-1 to Finland, who are three points adrift in third place.

At Anderlecht’s stadium in Brussels, Belgium defeated Kazakhstan for a second straight 6-0 victory in Group J.

Kevin De Bruyne now leads Romelu Lukaku in goals scored by Kevin De Bruyne, who also scored two goals.

Nicolas Raskin and Thomas Meunier also scored the goals, with Jeremy Doku of Manchester City scoring the other two.

North Macedonia won their fifth game 5-0 over Liechtenstein, which puts them on top with 11 points overall, one point ahead of Belgium, which still has a game to play, and Wales.

President Donald Trump was met by loud boos, mixed with a smattering of cheers, as Carlos Alcaraz defeated Jannik Sinner in four sets to win the US Open in New York on Sunday.

Alcaraz, 22, clinched his sixth Grand Slam title with a 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, and 6-4 victory, avenging his only other major disappointment, defeat by Sinner at Wimbledon in July.

After completing the Italian’s 27-match winning run at hard-court Grand Slams, Alcaraz will reclaim the top spot from Sinner and claim the top spot in the world for the first time since September 2023.

“I made the best of today. Sinner, who also lost to Alcaraz in the epic French Open final in June, “couldn’t do more,” he said.

The longest drought since Sinner’s defeat extends any Open men’s title defense to a winner extends.

Roger Federer won five US Open titles in a row between 2004 and 2008, and no other player has ever won the title.

With Trump’s presence, anticipation for the third successive Grand Slam final between the sport’s top two players took on a whole new level.

Following his appearances at the NFL’s Super Bowl in February and the FIFA Club World Cup final in July, the US leader made his latest series of appearances at major sporting events.

Before the Star-Spangled Banner was playing, he waving to the crowd, who greeted him with a mix of applause and boos. However, when he was re-aired on the stadium’s large screens later in the match, he received a frostier reception.

Bruce Springsteen, Tommy Hilfiger, Michael Douglas, Stephen Curry, and other sports and entertainment stars were present as well, along with a constellation of stars from the showbiz and the sports.

Trump Visit Delayed Things Off

Due to tighter security measures in place as a result of Trump’s attendance, the final was delayed by 30 minutes so fans could enter Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Even then, when Alcaraz broke Sinner in the match’s opening game, the 23, 000-capacity venue was essentially three-quarters full.

Alcaraz broke a second time for a 5-2 lead before serving out love, just like he did in the Wimbledon final.

At the start of the second set, Alcaraz sought to make the most of the crowd’s interest by putting his own stamp on the situation.

Sinner waited until he reached the break point, belatedly upping his game, and driving a 3-1 lead over the Spaniard who was suffering a brief dip on the serve.

Sinner put a set at one point on offer, but Alcaraz made a second break early in the third, wrigging out of a tight spot on serve with the aid of a stunning baseline smash that cut away from his rival for a 3-0 lead.

He extended the lead with a fourth break before wrapping up the set, keeping his foot down while cornering Sinner once more to start the fourth set.

Sinner saved two break points this time, but Alcaraz delivered the decisive blow in the fifth game, making him the only player to have won multiple majors on grass, clay, and grass courts.

Recent men’s champions of the US Open after Jannik Sinner won the 2025 event in a match win over Carlos Alcaraz:

2025: Carlos Alcaraz (ESP)
2024: Jannik Sinner (ITA)
2023: &nbsp, Novak Djokovic (SRB)
2022: &nbsp, Carlos Alcaraz (ESP)
2021: Daniil Medvedev (RUS)
2020: Dominic Thiem (AUT)
2019: Rafael Nadal (ESP)
2018: Novak Djokovic (SRB)
2017: Rafael Nadal (ESP)
2016: Stan Wawrinka (SUI)

The Court’s “Queen”

Aryna Sabalenka, the world’s number one, defeated her American rival in straight sets on Saturday to win her fourth Grand Slam title.

Sabalenka ruthlessly defeated Anisimova in a 6-3, 7-6 (7/3) victory at Arthur Ashe Stadium, cementing her position as the pinnacle of women’s tennis.

After suffering agonizing defeats in the Australian and French Open finals, the Belarusian woman had anticipated Saturday’s final knowing it would be her last chance to win the Grand Slam in 2025.

Just two months after her humiliating 6-0, 6-0 defeat by Iga Swiatek in the Wimbledon final, Sabalenka dignified those losses and made amends for them.

“It’s crazy, this was worth it,” said one student. Sabalenka became the first woman to successfully defend the US Open since Serena Williams in 2014, making her the first woman to do so.

Anisimova’s winning streak included a Wimbledon semi-final victory in six of her previous six matches against Sabalenka.

However, a determined Sabalenka, who was competing in her seventh career Grand Slam title game, put all of her experience to the test by stumbling on Anisimova’s path to a first Grand Slam title.

Losing two finals in a row is “super hard,” she says. According to Anisimova, “I don’t think I worked hard enough to achieve my dreams today,” revealing that the lighting under the arena’s closed roof had made it difficult to serve.

President Donald Trump was shown on camera booing loudly and cheering him during the US Open tennis final in New York on Sunday.

The venue was subject to lengthy delays before the match between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, with many seats still empty due to additional security checks as a result of Trump’s attendance.

Read more about Trump’s latest high-profile sports performance at the US Open.

Trump Visit Delays Match

Before the match started, hordes of tennis fans fought through security checkpoints as a result of Trump’s attendance at the US Open men’s final on Sunday.

The billionaire, who was born in New York, was returning to Flushing Meadows after a ten-year absence, joining a number of other celebrities who were competing against top-ranked Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz.

Trump briefly appeared alongside the company’s CEO and US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent at Rolex, where the president was previously seen.

Trump’s trade war, one of the highest rates on US trade partners, led to the invitation of the luxury watchmaker.

He waved to the crowd, which greeted him with a mix of cheers and boos when he once more appeared before the Star-Spangled Banner performance.

Trump hasn’t attended the US Open since 2015, when the crowd booed the then-presidential candidate and his wife Melania when they arrived.

Although the Republican leader has support in his hometown, the party is overwhelmingly Democratic.

According to several US media reports, those who watch the Sinner-Alcaraz showdown on television may not witness any unfavorable reactions to the president, with organizers directing broadcasters to refrain from displaying disruptions.