Bayer Leverkusen, unbeaten in their first 24 outings, finally lost their first Bundesliga game of the season when they went down 3-2 defeat to lowly Nuremberg on Sunday.
An injury time goal from Lukas Podolski rescued a 2-2 friendly draw for Germany against Ivory Coast on Wednesday, the home team's first game since last week's suicide of keeper Robert Enke.
Germany will travel to the World Cup with all six strikers from their preliminary World Cup squad to keep their offensive options open, coach Joachim Loew said on Monday.
Kevin-Prince Boateng scored his first goal for Schalke 04 on Saturday to earn his team a 1-0 win at Mainz 05 and champions Bayern Munich beat Hanover 96 2-0.
The Bundesliga was hit by another ball-over-the-line controversy on Saturday after Nuremberg were disallowed a goal in their 3-1 defeat at Borussia Moenchengladbach.
Holders Bayern Munich beat Bayer Leverkusen 5-3 on penalties after a 0-0 draw to move into the German Cup semi-final and stay on course for a treble of titles on Wednesday.
The Bundesliga was in danger of turning into another one-horse race on Sunday after second-placed VfL Wolfsburg were held 1-1 at home by promoted Paderborn, leaving titleholders Bayern Munich nine points clear at the top.
Borussia Dortmund's Ciro Immobile struck twice in the second half to secure a 2-0 victory.
Substitute Mario Goetze led Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich on a second-half four-goal rampage after midtable Mainz 05 had the temerity to take a halftime lead at the Allianz Arena in Munich.
An 85th-minute equaliser by Naldo gave VfL Wolfsburg a 2-2 draw at Borussia Dortmund, maintaining their hold on second place and leaving the hosts in the Bundesliga relegation zone.
Armenia midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan scored twice as Borussia Dortmund thrashed Borussia Moenchengladbach 4-0 on Saturday to launch their season with a bang on coach Thomas Tuchel's Bundesliga debut with the club.
Arsenal qualified for a 17th successive season with a nervy 1-0 win at home to Besiktas and Malmo made it for the first time with a 3-0 win over Salzburg, whose participation ended in the qualifiers for the ninth time in a row.
Images from the Champions League round of 16 second leg matches played on Tuesday
Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Cristiano Ronaldo come face-to-face next month when Sweden meet Portugal in a World Cup playoff and they sharpened their claws with six goals between them on a thrilling night of Champions League action on Wednesday.
Juventus striker Gonzalo Higuain again showed his killer instinct with two expertly-taken goals in a late 3-1 win at Torino after their less illustrious neighbours had scored first and dominated the Serie A game on Sunday.
Images from Champions League matches played across Europe on Tuesday
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