Earlier this week we speculated that Real Madrid's Christoph Metzelder was dating Marie Wellman, a German public relations gal with a serious head of hair.

Looks like they're out and proud - they were photographed together at Berlin Fashion Week in cuddle mode.

The German media has gone all a buzz about their boy Metze, (who plays for the German NT), being all loved up.

German Bundesliga Pre-register at the NEW football site 11×2 today FC Koln vs Hertha BSC Berlin LIVE FC Koln - Hertha BSC Berlin HIGHLIGHTS

German Bundesliga Pre-register at the NEW football site 11×2 today Hertha BSC Berlin vs FC Schalke 04 LIVE Hertha BSC Berlin - FC Schalke 04 HIGHLIGHTS

Pre-register at the NEW football site 11×2 today Watch Hertha Berlin vs. Werder Bremen LIVE Watch Hertha Berlin - Werder Bremen HIGHLIGHTS

There are only four games left in the Bundesliga and still five teams can win the title. This week's podcast focuses on the final run-in to an action-packed season in Germany and looks at the battles at the top and the bottom of the league.

In addition we:

• Review the football news in the Good, the Bad and the Ugly
• Introduce a new football expression in English for Football
• And continue the predictions battle in the Predictions competition

For learners of English check out our new Football Language Resources page with:

• Football glossary (a huge collection of football vocabulary, football cliches and football phrases)
• Worksheets and transcripts
• Vocabulary lists

Automatically receive the podcast each week by clicking on the icon

Transcript

Hans: Yes, another very interesting season in the Bundesliga is coming to a close.

Note: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it.

After a 7-5 win last week, Damian has seemingly an unassailable lead of 12 points over Damon in the predictions battle. This week sees our two experts predicting matches from the Premier League, the exciting Bundesliga title race, important games in France and Spain, as well as the UEFA Cup final and a quarter-final match from the Copa Libertadores.

Juventus have officially confirmed the capture of Brazilian playmaker Diego Ribas da Cunha from Werder Bremen. The Bianconeri have paid Werder a fee of 24.5m euros for the 24 year old, a figure that could rise to 27 million euros in the future. Diego joined Werder Bremen from FC Porto in 2006 for €6m, and has [.

Golden Teamgeist at Berlin
Originally uploaded by CLF Estamos a poco mas de 364 días del Mundial Sudáfrica 2010, por eso me parece bien recordar al mundial pasado Alemania 2006, en esta foto se encuentra el monumento La Puerta de Brandenburgo en Berlin, con el Kaiser Franz Beckenbauer revelando el balón dorado de la final.

La copa Confederaciones termino y eso me hizo recordar el mundial pasado Germany 2006 uno con los mejores ambientes, como esta fotografía que tome en Berlin; marca los años en que Alemania fue campeona del mundo a excepción de la ultima donde que Deutschland quedo eliminada por la defensiva Italia.

According to David Maddock at the Daily Mirror, Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez admitted that he might have to sell to raise funds to buy certain players this summer. He was quoted as saying,

"I have an idea of who we want, but maybe we need to sell someone to increase what I already have to spend .

Bundesliga outfit Hertha Berlin informed Andriy Voronin that he would be returning to Liverpool now that his season-long loan was up. The Ukranian internation scored 11 times for Hertha last season.

"I want to wish the club and their fans all the best in the future," Voronin told Die Welt.

Earlier this week we speculated that Real Madrid's Christoph Metzelder was dating Marie Wellman, a German public relations gal with a serious head of hair.

Looks like they're out and proud - they were photographed together at Berlin Fashion Week in cuddle mode.

The German media has gone all a buzz about their boy Metze, (who plays for the German NT), being all loved up.

There are some clubs in the Bundesliga where even Obama fails.

Energie Cottbus grabbed a lifeline by securing the relegation play-off spot, but ended up having not even close to a chance in their tie against FC Nuremberg, who beat them 5-0 on aggregate to end all eastern German presence in the Bundesliga.

We got the loss here I was fearing. Perhaps not a pleasing result but immediately we notice the away goal we scored. This will help us alot since really all we need in OAKA now is 1-0.

Before anything else two points must be pointed out. Firstly, Scocco was out for this match due to cards and will play with us for the next match.

• Clean it like the Kaiser. (The Local)
• Bayer may be only second in the Bundesliga but are top of the York Monday Six-a-side Football Leisure League. (The Press)
• Horst Hrubesch's crossbar challenge pwns Ronaldinho's crossbar challenge. (FANartisch)
• We've got our first title candidate (or second if you consider Bayern automatic seeds).

Spain
A Cristiano-less Real Madrid suffered its first loss of the season, 2-1 to Sevilla. That means Barcelona has the sole lead in La Liga.
Italy
We had a Ronaldinho's sighting as the Brazilian super sub netted an incredible late-game equalizer to give AC Milan a 1-1 draw against 10-man Atalanta.

• The next generation of hooliganism is digital. (ESPN Soccernet).
• To attend Hertha's home games in Berlin's Olympiastadion just walk down Jesse Owens Alley and then turn left onto Mullholland Drive. (Ballspiel)
• Tim Vickery gives his verdict on some of the Bundesliga's South American imports.

• An English intern at German footie magazine 11Freunde talks about German and English football. (11Freunde)
• Uli Hesse-Lichtenberger writes about footballers who suffer/ed from depression. (ESPN Soccernet)
• Bayern have an "on" switch and they have a far more popular "off" switch as well.

Not since Zinedine Zidane lined up Marco Materazzi's chest with his head in Berlin over three years ago have so many opinions, distortions, hyperbole and hypocritical utterances been spewed forth.

The "Henry Incident" has provided an opportunity for outlandish stereo-typing and xenophobia.

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Pre-register at the NEW football site 11×2 today German Bundesliga Hamburger SV vs Hertha BSC Berlin LIVE Hamburger SV vs Hertha BSC Berlin HIGHLIGHTS

We have a month to go to decide the title. But whereas Hoffenheim, Hamburg and Hertha faltered under the pressure of being league leaders, we find that Wolfsburg's biggest strength is having no "H" in their name. After a loss to Cottbus, they bounced backed emphatically this weekend and looked poised for their first title.

There are only four games left in the Bundesliga and still five teams can win the title. This week's podcast focuses on the final run-in to an action-packed season in Germany and looks at the battles at the top and the bottom of the league.

In addition we:

• Review the football news in the Good, the Bad and the Ugly
• Introduce a new football expression in English for Football
• And continue the predictions battle in the Predictions competition

For learners of English check out our new Football Language Resources page with:

• Football glossary (a huge collection of football vocabulary, football cliches and football phrases)
• Worksheets and transcripts
• Vocabulary lists

Automatically receive the podcast each week by clicking on the icon

Transcript

Hans: Yes, another very interesting season in the Bundesliga is coming to a close.

Canberra football star Josip Simunic has often stated his desire to play in England so it was a little surprising to see him sign for German shock side Hoffenheim.
After ten years in Berlin playing in front of 75,000 fans on many occasions, playing for Hoffenhiem, who must be cashed up given their tiny town, will be a "new challenge.

The day after United drew in crowds of over 71,000 to attend a pre-season friendly, figures have been published to show that we are the best supported club in all of Europe, with a higher average attendance than any team on the continent.

Below are the average attendances for the 08/09 season with the maximum capacity to follow.

According to a report in German newspaper Bild, Bundesliga outfit Hertha are keen to sign Liverpool attacker Andriy Voronin on another one-year loan deal.
The Ukrainian forward played on loan for the Berlin outfit last term, and quickly developed into a key player. Voronin was the club's top scorer, netting 11 goals.

Time to cash in or better to hold off and see if he can still make the grade?

Hertha Berlin have changed their minds about not coming up with the cash to match Liverpool's valuation of Andriy Voronin.

The 30-year-old Ukraine forward was outstanding last season while on loan to the German club who at one time harboured ambitions of a surprise Bundesliga title win thanks to his 11 goals in 20 games.

Liverpool striker Andriy Voronin is reportedly set to make his move to Bundesliga outfit Hertha Berlin permanent in a €3.5 million deal.
The Ukrainian spent last season on loan in Germany and enjoyed a successful spell, nettting 11 goals and finishing the season as the club's top scorer.

It was a bold move from Artur Wichniarek to return to Hertha Berlin. After all, it is a club that almost ruined his career. The second time around was supposed to be different, Konig Artur was brought to become Hertha's leading striker. Unfortunately, the first two games weren't very promising for Artur.

After a title tilt last season, Hertha BSC now prop up the Bundesliga. What has gone wrong?
Rock-bottom Hertha shame Berlin as Bochum lose patience with Koller.
Initial descent...

Letzte Woche musste Marcel Koller seinen Trainerstuhl in Bochum räumen, am Montag war es dann Trainerkollege Favre, der in Berlin entlassen wurde. Nach der 1:5 Niederlage war selbst die letzte Zuversicht bei den Hertha-Verantwortlichen erloschen, dass die Wende mit dem Schweizer noch geschafft werden könnte.

Bayern face Schalke, Hoffenheim host Wolfsburg and Dortmund head to Werder in Round 12...
Friday
Bayer Leverkusen – Eintracht Frankfurt
Saturday
Bayern Munich – Schalke
Borussia M'gladbach – Stuttgart
Mainz– Nuernberg
Hoffenheim – Wolfsburg
Bochum – Freiburg

Sunday
Hannover – Hamburg
Hertha Berlin – Koeln
Werder Bremen – Borussia Dortmund

Ukraine international Andriy Voronin, brought to Liverpool in 2007 from Bayer Leverkusen, is yet to challenge for a consistent first-team role in Rafael Benitez's side, but the 30-year-old hopes that the goal ratio he secured while on loan last season will help elevate his status in his manager's mindset.

Something to read while you watch Coritiba fans react to being relegated... The World Cup Group of Meth, and of Lady Macbeth (Sport is a TV Show) The worst top flight team in the European big leagues (Hertha Berlin Offside) Season finale = perfect bank robbing time (Dirty Tackle) It's not all puppies and flowers on Darius Vassell's blog [.

Werder host Schalke and Dortmund pay a visit to Wolfsburg in this week's fixtures...
Friday
Hertha Berlin – Bayer Leverkusen
Saturday
Borussia M'gladbach – Hannover
Nuernberg – Hamburg
Freiburg – Koeln
Hoffenheim – Eintracht Frankfurt
Bochum – Bayern Munich
Werder Bremen – Schalke
Sunday
Mainz – Stuttgart
Wolfsburg – Borussia Dortmund

German Bundesliga side Hertha Berlin have terminated their contract with Bryan Arguez. The decision was made by "mutual understanding," according to Focus.de. The former first-round SuperDraft selection of DC United is now back in his native Miami.
Read on at ASN's 'Over There' page.

Mensch, Andrey - muss das sein? Da lief es doch die letzten Wochen gar nicht so schlecht für dich. In Berlin wollte man dir schon eine Statue aufbauen, die Siegessäule abreißen und dich darauf platzieren. Das alles machst du mit einer Aktion zunichte. Ein Bein stellen, sowas machen normalerweise nur Grundschüler, den Ball dann auch noch dem Gegenspieler in den Rücken treten nur Kindergartenkinder.

Das war es also, das erste von vier Nord-Derbys. Ein würdiger Auftakt der 19-tätigen Hamburg-Bremen-Festspiele, wie ich finde. Ein Match, das zwar keinen hochklassigen Fußball, aber hochspannende Unterhaltung bot. Als HSV-Fan muss ich konstatieren, dass das spielerisch einfach zu wenig war, was die Rothosen vor heimischem Publikum präsentierten.

The two northern clubs Hamburg and Bremen had to play in the Bundesliga one more time before they'll face each other on Thursday for the second leg of the UEFA-Cup semi-final.

Hamburg had to take on Berlin which is a direct competitor for the Bundesliga championship. But with a 1-1 draw the chances have shrunk for both teams although the upcoming opponents could be easier to play against than those for Wolfsburg, Bayern and Stuttgart.

Hoffenheim are not able to win anymore. 0-1 at home against Berlin. What happened? What happened to players like Demba Ba or Chinedu Obasi? They bedazzled us and especially their opponents so badly in the first half of the season that they were linked to clubs like Real Madrid and ManU (But then again, who isn't?