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The Daily Bee (November 8th, 2018): BVB linked to Nicolas Pépé

And Alcacer left out of Spain team

FC Porto v Lille - Algarve Cup Photo by Carlos Rodrigues/Getty Images
  • Champions League results

Some favorites thrashing minnows, Bundesliga teams doing ok and a rather surprising turnaround would probably best describe yesterday's results in the Champions League.

Bayern Munich comfortably won their game against AEK Athens 2:0 but the Greek club also clearly lacked the quality to hurt the Bavarians. Niko Kovac’s team is now in prime position to qualify for the knockout rounds and finish first in their group because of Ajax’s 1:1 draw in Lisbon.

Hoffenheim found themselves in an awful position against Lyon in a crucial game, trailing 2:0 and being one man down at minute 51 of the match. Nevertheless the team fought back and got the 2:2 draw which means they still have a chance, albeit a narrow one, to qualify for the knockout round.

The most surprising result was Manchester United fighting back and scoring twice in the last five minutes to come back and winning 2:1 against Juventus. Mourinho’s team was lucky to not be down by three or even four goals at that point but they still got the three points in the end.

Nicolas Pépé is currently one of the most sought after young talents in Europe. The 23-year-old right winger has already scored 8 goals and 7 assists in 12 games for LOSC Lille this season in Ligue 1.

TF1 claim Borussia Dortmund is one of four clubs interested in the winger, Arsenal, Barcelona and Bayern being the other three. Three of those clubs (BVB, Bayern and Arsenal) would be willing to spend 50€ million on Pépé. Other clubs like Atletico Madrid and Chelsea could also still enter the race for him.

This rumor looks a bit questionable at first glance but there could be a lot of truth to it. Pépé will likely leave Lille next summer for a top club and BVB could be interested if Pulisic leaves Dortmund.

  • Alcacer not called up for Spain

Paco Alcacer had a great start to the season for Dortmund and Spain but it was apparently not enough to get another call up for the upcoming international matches. It could be because of his constant injury problems that have limited him but there is no official explanation so far why he was left out.

Daily Buzz: BVB had a great start to the season and Bayern have struggled so far compared to the last few years. With Der Klassiker coming up on Saturday who should be considered the favorite for the game? And what should we expect from a young BVB team? Should we expect a win at home or would you be happy with a draw?