Football in Germany

The Brit from Serbian heritage Nestor El Maestro is the new coach of CSKA Sofia. He signed a 2-year contract with the club and was presented to the media.

Jupp Heynckes was forced to deny Bayern Munich are bad losers after their shock 3-1 defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt in the German Cup final ruined his final game as manager.

AFP - Turkey's football chief Tuesday condemned as "slanderous" and "unacceptable" German criticism of a meeting between top players of Turkish origin in Britain's Premier League and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Germany internationals Mesut Ozil of Arsenal and Ilkay Gundogan of Manchester City, both of Turkish origin, met Erdogan late Sunday during his three-day visit to Britain.

Bayern Munich goalkeeper Sven Ulreich had done an admirable job filling the gloves of the injured Manuel Neuer for most of the season but he is destined to be remembered for his catastrophic blunder against Real Madrid in the Champions League on May 1.

Greek soccer league organizers have deducted three points from Panathinaikos after the Athens club failed to settle unpaid wages to German defender Jens Wemmer.

Organizers say the points will be returned if the debt is settled. The decision dropped Panathinaikos two places to 11th in the 16-club league with 29 points from 26 matches.

Manchester City midfielder İlkay Gündoğan believes he is close to finding his best form after a injury-ridden start to his spell at the Premier League club.

Cat wanders onto pitch during Champions League match between Besiktaş and Bayern Munich in Istanbul

Beşiktaş will not cry for the moon when it hosts Bayern Munich in the return of a 5-0 loss in the first leg of the Champions League last 16 game, but coach Şenol Güneş remains ambitious to play tough against the Bundesliga giant on March 14.

Defending Turkish league champion Beşiktaş visits Bayern Munich on Feb.19 in the first leg of a Champions League last 16 clash, hoping for an advantageous score for the return game at home.

The Turkish Football Federation (TFF) has banned German-Turkish player Deniz Naki from football for three years and six months on charges of “ideological propaganda” and “separatism.