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Banyana Banyana star Thembi Kgatlana provided an assist and opened her Spanish Primera Iberdrola account as Minsk retained their unbeaten start to the season after a 2-2 draw against Levante on Saturday.

Kgatlana joined the Spanish outfit from Portuguese side SL Benfica this summer and enjoyed a winning start on her competitive debut as a substitute in her side in the recent 1-0 victory over Real Betis.

Despite her fine display in their last outing, coach Iker Dorronsoro handed the South Africa international her second appearance as a substitute and she made the best of her presence on the pitch.

However, Nigeria's Charity Adule and Equatorial Guinea's Ruth Álvarez earned their places in the starting XI for the second consecutive match of the season for Eibar.

The visitors made a false start to the encounter as Aldana Cometti set up Esther Gonzalez to hand the hosts, who were aiming for back-to-back wins, the opening goal after just 15 minutes of action.

Levante continued from where they left off in the second half when Claudia Zornoza played through Gonzalez for her brace and her side's second of the match in the 64th minute.

Desperate for a fightback, Dorronsoro brought on Kgaltana five minutes later and the South African won a penalty for the visitors which Maria Llompart made no mistake to convert in the 74th minute.

Eibar continued their pouring of attacks and were rewarded on the brink of regulation time when substitute Arola Aparicio sent through a pass from the right for Kgatlana's late goal to force a stalemate.

Kgatlana has now scored her first competitive goal in the colours of Eibar on her second appearance and has become the first African to score in the Spanish Primera Iberdrola this season.

Besides Kgatlana, Adule was also in action for 81 minutes before she was taken off for Kuki, while Alvarez lasted the duration for Eibar.

The result saw Eibar move to third on the log with four points after two games and they will continue their campaign at home against Madrid on October 17.

Germany had a clanger from Georgi Bushchan to thank for their 2-1 win against Ukraine as Joachim Low's side finally won a Nations League match.

At their seventh attempt, Germany picked up a victory in the competition, but there were nervy moments during the closing stages in Kiev.

Matthias Ginter and Leon Goretzka gave the visitors a healthy 2-0 lead, with the latter nodding in from a couple of yards after Ukraine goalkeeper Bushchan practically dropped a cross onto his head.

The visitors were under pressure late on after Ruslan Malinovskiy's 76th-minute penalty gave Ukraine hope, but they held on.

Germany went ahead in the 20th minute as Ginter netted his second senior international goal, turning in a cross from Antonio Rudiger who danced around the right side of the Ukraine defence before delivering the ball low across the six-yard box.

Joshua Kimmich almost beat Bushchan from 25 yards, forcing the goalkeeper who conceded seven against France in midweek to tip over.

Germany looked sure to get another before half-time when Serge Gnabry's diving header from Ginter's clipped cross from the right arrived towards the near right corner, but Bushchan flung himself across to turn the ball wide.

Bushchan's calamitous blunder came in the 49th minute, when he made an awful mess of Lukas Klostermann's cross from the right flank, and Goretzka could not miss.

Julian Draxler should have scored a third goal for Germany 90 seconds later after Gnabry cut the ball into his path. The Paris Saint-Germain midfielder had time to set himself in the penalty area, but this time Bushchan made the save.

Ukraine's threat was minimal, but they had a lifeline when Roman Yaremchuk went down under Niklas Sule's challenge, earning a penalty.

Malinovskiy fired into the bottom-left corner, but Ukraine, backed by fervent, horn-blowing home support after the stadium was open to 30 per capacity, could not find a leveller.

Spain stretched their unbeaten run to 15 matches across all competitions as they beat Switzerland 1-0 in Madrid on Saturday to remain in charge of Group A4 in the Nations League.

Luis Enrique's men had impressed without finding the net in their friendly draw with Portugal last time out, but Mikel Oyarzabal – the winger chosen to lead the line against the Swiss – provided the decisive touch in the 14th minute to leave La Roja with seven points from three games.

Although Switzerland threatened first, it was a rare attack in an opening half dominated by Spain, who opened the scoring soon after through Real Sociedad star Oyarzabal's well-taken finish following a defensive mishap by the visitors.

Spain crafted several opportunities to extend their advantage in the second period, and while they were ultimately unsuccessful, the away side's lack of potency in attack meant one goal was enough.

Switzerland should have taken an early lead, but David de Gea did brilliantly to palm Loris Benito's effort around the post after a low cross found its way through to the left wing-back.

Spain capitalised less than two minutes later.

The visitors tried to play their way out from the back but Yann Sommer's pass to Granit Xhaka was poor and exacerbated by the captain's slip, with Mikel Merino subsequently pouncing and nudging to Oyarzabal - back in the team after testing positive for coronavirus antibodies prior to the Portugal game - to convert.

Sommer intervened to good effect just before the half-hour mark, though, producing a vital save after Ferran Torres met Jesus Navas' cross with a towering header.

Spain continued to spurn chances after the interval – Ansu Fati was wasteful twice in quick succession, as he was first thwarted by Nico Elvedi and then somehow failed to turn home from point-blank range with his second opportunity.

Sergio Ramos then led penalty appeals with 22 minutes to go, though they were unsurprisingly unsuccessful as the Spain captain's volley struck an arm from close range.

Switzerland did finally enjoy some pressure in the latter stages, but De Gea remained largely untested.

What does it mean? Spain still not quite convincing in the box

La Roja were not exactly bereft of creativity here – they managed to find their way through the Swiss backline on several occasions, but they were not clinical.

Of their 12 shots, only two were on target, and one of those was of course the goal, which only came about due to haplessness in the visitors' defence.

While Gerard Moreno and Rodrigo Moreno are both fine players in their own right, it seems Luis Enrique still needs to be won over given a winger in Oyarzabal was given the nod in a central role here.

Merino an effective presence

While one La Real star got the winner, another impressed in midfield. Merino was his typical blend of craft and guile here, as he played a couple of key passes (tied for the game high), including an assist, while he also made two tackles, two interceptions and gained possession 14 times, more than anyone else in red.

Sommer pays the price

In the end, Sommer's lapse in concentration in the first half proved decisive as it gifted Spain the lead and it was always going to be tough clawing it back.

What's next?

Spain go to Ukraine on Tuesday in their second of this month's Nations League double-header, while Switzerland face Germany in Cologne the same day.

Former Bafana Bafana coach Clive Barker has questioned the criteria used by the South African Football Association (Safa) to appoint head coaches. 

This follows Bafana's 1-1 draw against Namibia on Thursday, where after the game, SA fans asked how Molefi Ntseki was chosen ahead of the rest of the high-profile coaches in the country. 

Barker said while Ntseki worked as an assistant to Stuart Baxter and has experience at an international level, he is clearly feeling the pressure because of the results Bafana have got under his leadership.   

The veteran mentor believes Bafana Bafana should definitely dust themselves and beat Zambia, and he expects Ntseki to bring back the likes of Andile Jali and Percy Tau in order for the country to not to lose faith in him. 

"I don't understand the format Safa uses to appoint the new coach. Yes, he worked with Stuart but it's clear that he [Ntseki] is under pressure even after four games. There's too much pressure in that hot seat, and I know how the coach is feeling right now, especially because we didn't win. So, he has to win against Zambia," Barker told Goal.  

"The coach would certainly bring in your Jali, Percy Tau and others. So, he has to beat Zambia," he said.    

Looking back at where Bafana Bafana got it wrong against the Brave Warriors, Barker said while he didn't watch the entire match, he could see the team failed to build-up from the back. 

He strongly feels Ntseki took a gamble by relying on inexperienced players when the country expected Bafana Bafana to easily beat Namibia. 

"I didn't watch the whole game [against Namibia] but I think it was disappointing," he continued. 

"Everybody expected Bafana to have a flying start but it didn't happen. I expected them to start the build-ups from the back but I can't say they had a bad game but it was just disappointing to watch, in my opinion, but maybe it's because he gambled with a lot of inexperienced players. 

"That certainly had an effect on how the team wanted to play and I think it was a big gamble by Ntseki not to include the experienced ones in the starting line-up because the country wanted nothing less than a win, especially because it was Namibia," concluded Barker.    

Serge Gnabry's star has visibly risen across Europe, his prolific contributions for Bayern Munich and Germany turning him into a prized asset.

The winger is also notably known for his trademark goal celebration, in which he mimics cooking spaghetti in a large pot after he scores a goal. But what does it mean, and why does he do it? Goal takes a look.

Gnabry's famous spaghetti goal celebration was inspired by one of his heroes, NBA athlete James Harden, who originated the move.

The Houston Rockets star is known for putting his hands together and making a swirling motion with his hands to celebrate his shots. Gnabry is a huge basketball fan, and is a dedicated watcher of the NBA - and Harden in particular.

"There's a video on YouTube where he's cooking after dropping, I think, a buzzer-beater and won the game," Gnabry said about his trademark celebration.

"So he was cooking, stirring it up, and that's the celebration."

As for Harden, he has never explained the meaning about his gesture, but his cooking celebration is construed as a reference to 'cooking' the opposition defenders in the hopes of heating up the play. It's a gesture designed to taunt the opposition players, which is common across all sport - making the game all the more enticing to fans and other players alike.

And so after watching Harden celebrate in such a manner, he wanted to emulate the move for football - highlighting the similarity of their roles in the team.

"I think you can relate the celebration to him having a buzzer-beater or winning the game to us, as in football we don’t score as many points as they do in basketball," Gnabry said.

"So I think there's a resemblance and he's a very good offensive player, I'm an offensive player so, I think so too."

The two athletes were able to do their cooking celebration in person when the pair met in the United States during Bayern's 2019 Audi summer pre-season tour, off the backs of a friendly fixture against Real Madrid.

To Gnabry's delight, Harding visited the team after the game and they performed the iconic celebration together in sync.

"After the game, I finally met James Harden for the first time when he came into our dressing room," Gnabry wrote in his USA diary titled, 'What's up, Serge?'.

"Obviously we 'cooked' together, that was very cool. I was really happy he'd actually watched the game and that I managed to find the back of the net."

Moise Kean admits he could have headed back to Juventus after seeing a loan door opened at Everton and is “not particularly upset” at having left English football for Paris Saint-Germain.

The Italy international striker is to spend the 2020-21 campaign on loan at the Ligue 1 champions.

A change of scenery has been sought after struggling to make the desired impact at Goodison Park on the back of a £27.5 million ($36m) transfer from Juve in the summer of 2019.

Kean quickly won the support of the Toffees faithful, with an anti-racism banner unfurled in his honour after the 20-year-old was subjected to terrace taunts in his homeland.

Despite being one of the hottest prospects in European football, the youngster failed to live up to his billing and recorded just four goals through 37 appearances.

That led to him exploring other options, with Carlo Ancelotti unable to find a regular role for him in an in-form Everton team currently being spearheaded by Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

Goal learned in September that a potential return to Turin was being lined up for Kean.

He has, however, favoured a switch to France over a retracting of his steps to his homeland, with the opportunity to link up with 2020 Champions League finalists PSG too good to pass up.

Kean believes he can thrive in France and put his Premier League frustration behind him.

He has told Rai Sport: “I am not particularly upset to have left English football, even if the banner from the Everton fans really moved me, as I wasn't expecting it.

“It's true, I could've returned to Juve, but I made this decision along with my family to play in Ligue 1. I've been to Paris before and have relatives here.

“I hope to learn a great deal from this fantastic experience. I am young, I like to work closely with top strikers, so I can learn from their experience and their style of football.”

Kean will face more fierce competition for places in Paris, with Thomas Tuchel boasting a star-studded squad that includes the considerable attacking talent of Kylian Mbappe, Neymar, Angel Di Maria and Mauro Icardi.

Banyana Banyana midfielder Refiloe Jane has scored her first goal of the season for AC Milan as they defeated Empoli 3-0 in Saturday's Serie A women's encounter at Centro Sportivo Monteboro.

The 28-year-old made a return to the Rossonere side last week against Juventus after recovering from an injury she picked up during her side's training before the San Marino game on August 29.

In a 1-0 loss to the champions, Jane featured for 89 minutes on her second appearance of the season before she was replaced by Francesca Vitale at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza.

Having been handed her third start of the season, Jane rewarded the confidence given to her by coach Maurizio Ganz as she fired the hosts in front off Valentina Giacinti's pass in the 23rd minute.

After a narrow first-half lead, the visitors maintained their search for more but could not find a breakthrough until Natasha Dowie's fine pass helped Giacinti double Milan's lead in the 80th minute.

On the brink of regulation time, Linda Tucceri Cimini got on the scoresheet after she struck from a free-kick to complete the rout for the visitors.

Jane lasted the duration of the match and it was her first goal of the season for AC Milan and her third since she arrived in June 2019.

The result takes Milan to the top of the log with 12 points from five matches and they sit ahead of Juventus on superior goal difference despite the league champions having a game in hand. 

They will aim to continue their impressive start to the season when they host rivals Inter Milan at the San Siro Stadium on October 18.

Christian Pulisic is excited by the potential in Giovanni Reyna and admits “the sky’s limit” for a fellow American following in his footsteps at Borussia Dortmund.

A key man on the books at Chelsea made the brave decision to head for Germany as a promising teenager.

That proved to be a wise career call, with Pulisic starring for a Bundesliga heavyweight while becoming a key man for his country and a Premier League-bound performer all by the age of 21.

Reyna is now treading a similar path, with the 17-year-old re-writing the history books after making his own breakthrough in Dortmund.

He is another being tipped to reach the very top, with Pulisic confident that a teenage compatriot can live up to expectations for club and country.

The United States international told CBS Sports of Reyna: “He's got to keep proving himself.

“Dortmund is off to a great start and so is he. We want to see how he does, and we're all excited to have him on the national team.

“I think for Gio, really, the sky's the limit. He's got a bright future ahead of him. But like I said, he's still got a lot to prove to get to that point.

“Obviously, we see the potential right now and a lot of talent. So we're really excited.”

Pulisic knows how tough it can be to leave the comforts of your homeland and go chasing a dream on foreign shores.

He has shown that impressive progress can be made with the right blend of talent and character.

Reyna is considered to boast those qualities, with the talented teenager clearing a number of hurdles to make his way into the first-team fold at Dortmund.

Pulisic said of his experiences and the advice he is now in a position to offer: “The first year is very tough, but it's so important to keep that ultimate goal in mind.

“Just keep going after that. That's really what I did, even through the tough days. That'll get you through, setting goals for yourself.”

Reyna is chasing down those targets at present, with the youngster feeling happy and settled in his current surroundings as his obvious quality begins to attract admiring glances and spark inevitable transfer talk.

Joshua Zirkzee says it was difficult for him to leave Bayern Munich on transfer deadline day following the arrival of Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting on the same day from Paris Saint-Germain.

The Cameroon international’s switch from the French capital to the Bavarian capital was not something that was anticipated and it could have an impact on the amount of game time Zirkzee – who is back-up to Robert Lewandowski, will see.

Zirkzee is an emerging player from Bayern’s academy, breaking into the first team last season and scoring four goals in nine appearances. The 19-year-old Dutch-Nigerian acknowledges he might have further limited opportunities with Choupo-Moting’s arrival and for that reason does not rule out leaving the Allianz Arena for further playing opportunities.

“It was a difficult situation, only there was not enough time on deadline day,” Zirkzee told Dutch daily Algemeen Dagblad.

“I will stay with Bayern now, but maybe something will happen in the future. I don't know exactly yet.”

Zirkzee was rumoured to be linked with a loan move to Feyenoord whom he played for at youth level during the 2016-17 campaign. Then he moved to Bayern’s academy and when quizzed whether he was in contact with the Dutch club, he said: “I have never spoken to Feyenoord myself."

Despite failing to secure a transfer out of Bayern and the stiffer competition that comes with Choupo-Moting’s arrival, Zirkzee believes he can still grow in the Bavarian capital and fight for his place before the next transfer window.

Zirkzee has already played twice in the Bundesliga this season, one of them being 57 minutes of action in the 4-1 defeat by Hoffenheim at the Rhein-Neckar-Arena on matchday two.

“I can still develop very well at Bayern," he continued. "Who says I'm not going to get playing minutes? It's up to me to compete. If so, I can always stay. If not, we still have the winter break.”

Zirkzee is eligible to play for either the Netherlands or Nigeria. He has played for the former at various youth levels, debuting for the Under-21s in a 5-0 win over Gibraltar in the Euro Under-21 qualifiers on Thursday.

Ghana coach CK Akonnor believes his team were let down by the unfamiliarity among players in Friday's friendly defeat to Mali.

In his first game in charge of the Black Stars since taking over from James Kwasi Appiah in January, Akonnor watched on helplessly as his side succumbed to a 3-0 loss in Antalya, Turkey.

Ghana's line-up featured three debutants as well as two players returning to the national fold after some time in the wilderness.

“I won’t blame the players for the defeat but the key thing which resulted in our loss to Mali was that the team was not organised,” Akonnor to Adom FM.

“The players didn’t know themselves because most of them were debutantes and [it was] even the first time they’re playing together.

“We trained for only two days and there was a lack of understanding as well. These are the few things which affected us during the game

“Mali didn’t play anything extraordinary but they were an organized side which handed them the victory.”

Akonnor handed a debut and starting place to Brentford winger Tariqe Fosu who was born in England to Ghanaian parents.

France-born defender Alexander Djiku, who plays club football for Strasbourg, also started in midfield for the Black Stars in what was his first appearance for Ghana.

Israel-based winger Eugene Ansah was the third debutant in Akonnor's first XI, starting the game on the left-wing.

Nordsjaelland teenager Kamaldeen Sulemana and Amiens midfielder Emmanuel Lomotey both made their debuts as substitutes.

Besiktas midfielder Bernard Mensah, who is back with the Black Stars for the first time since 2015, and goalkeeper Lawrence Ati-Zigi, who has been recalled for the first time since the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) tournament in Egypt, also started in the game.

“We were all not pleased with the performance of the Black Stars," Ghana Football Association (GFA) communications director Henry Asante Twum told Fox FM.

The Black Stars will play their second game in three days on Monday when they face 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar.

“Ghanaians should forgive us for such a poor performance from the team [against Mali] but you all should expect a better game against Qatar come Monday.”

Akonnor is testing his side's strength ahead of November when Ghana face Sudan in a 2022 Afcon qualifying double-header.

Sarah Micheal put up a fantastic display as her goal inspired Mallbackens comeback 2-1 victory over Sandvikens in Saturday's league encounter.

The former Nigeria striker grabbed her fifth of the season, with a late equaliser in Mallbackens' 2-2 draw against Kalmar over a month ago.

Having earned her 11th start of the season, the 30-year-old was hoping to end her five-match drought and lead her side back to winning ways after back-to-back defeats to Lidkoping and AIK.

Despite creating several chances, Conny Johansson's side started Saturday’s encounter on the back foot after Jessica Backman's strike handed the hosts the lead seconds from the half-time break.

However, Micheal brought her valuable experience to the front once again as she inspired Mallbackens comeback bid with a fine 17 minutes after the restart at Jernvallen Arena.

Three minutes later, Malin Ahlberg ensured the visitors completed the comeback as she grabbed the winner for the visitors.

Ugandan Ritah Kvumbi was in action for the opening 45 minutes. The win means Mallbackens are back in seventh position on the log with 29 points from 20 games. They will host bottom side Sunnana in their next game on Wednesday.

Rhoda Mulaudzi was on target and Bambanani Mbane provided an assist in Dinamo-BSUPC's 4-1 victory over Zorka-BDU on Saturday.

Fresh from their celebration of a domestic double last week, the Africans did not relent for Yuri Maleev's side as Banyana Banyana stars continued their impactful showing in front of goal this weekend.

With the league title in the bag, Dinamo aimed to finish the season unbeaten following last week's 2-0 victory over Minsk.

Yuliya Duben stunned the champions when she opened the scoring for the visitors after 18 minutes of action at Dinamo Minsk Stadium.

Dinamo, however, did not allow the celebration to last for Zorka as Anastasia Shuppo's struck five minutes later to level matters.

After the break, Mulaudzi found a breakthrough with her individual brilliance to put the hosts in front for the first time in the encounter, two minutes after the restart.

Mbane made a promising run into the area before setting up Karina Olkhovik to extend the hosts lead in the 64th minute before Anastasiya Shlapakova struck six minutes later and sealed the triumph.

Mulaudzi was in action for 69 minutes of the match and has now bagged five goals in six matches for Dinamo this season. 

Substitute Mbane featured for the final 36 minutes and Cameroon's Dabda saw the final 23 minutes of the encounter, while Salimata Simpore was rested from the encounter.

The latest win means Dinamo have now stretched their winning run to 19 league matches and 23 in all competitions this season. 

They will welcome Bobruichanka in their next fixture on November 1 before wrapping up their campaign at Neman a week later. 

Facundo Pellistri has admitted that he turned down a move to Lyon because the appeal of Manchester United was too strong. 

The 18-year-old winger joined the Red Devils from Penarol on deadline day, making a €10 million (£9m/$12m) move from the Uruguayan club.

Big things are expected from the teenager, who had also been linked with a move to Real Madrid, Juventus and Atletico Madrid.

Pellistri admitted that making the move to Old Trafford is hard to wrap his head around, having only made his senior debut with Penarol in the fall of 2019.

"It's amazing that I only made my debut with the senior team a little more than a year ago," Pellistri told Telemundo.

"It was unimaginable and to play in the first team with Penarol and now to do it with Manchester United, I would never have dreamed of it and it is something very emotional for me and my family."

The winger admitted that he had an offer from Lyon in addition to Man Utd, but the draw of playing in a league he frequently watches on TV was too much to pass up.

"There was a lot of talk about the two offers and luckily they tried to leave me out of it as much as possible so as not to go crazy," Pellistri added.

"First came Lyon and then Manchester and I am very happy with the opportunity.

"It's a league that I always watch with my parents, seeing the great teams and you can't imagine going to play there.

"Now that I have the chance to play there, I'm eager to start a new adventure and see how the rhythm is and if it is as fast as they say."

Pellistri also expressed his gratitude for the club he is leaving behind, having advanced through the youth ranks at Penarol. Though he is only just departing, he admitted he is already thinking about coming back some day.

"It is the biggest team," Pellistri said of the Uruguayan giants. "I played for all of the club's youth teams, I was at the club for more than seven years. I lived everything, many experiences, very nice things like debuting in the Campeon del Siglo stadium among other things. It was a dream and a pleasure to defend the team.

"I am leaving with a lot of desire to return one day."

Spain stretched their unbeaten run to 15 matches across all competitions as they beat Switzerland 1-0 in Madrid on Saturday to remain in charge of Group A4 in the Nations League.

Luis Enrique's men had impressed without finding the net in their friendly draw with Portugal last time out, but Mikel Oyarzabal – the winger chosen to lead the line against the Swiss – provided the decisive touch in the 14th minute to leave La Roja with seven points from three games.

Although Switzerland threatened first, it was a rare attack in an opening half dominated by Spain, who opened the scoring soon after through Real Sociedad star Oyarzabal's well-taken finish following a defensive mishap by the visitors.

Spain crafted several opportunities to extend their advantage in the second period, and while they were ultimately unsuccessful, the away side's lack of potency in attack meant one goal was enough.

Switzerland should have taken an early lead, but David de Gea did brilliantly to palm Loris Benito's effort around the post after a low cross found its way through to the left wing-back.

Spain capitalised less than two minutes later.

The visitors tried to play their way out from the back but Yann Sommer's pass to Granit Xhaka was poor and exacerbated by the captain's slip, with Mikel Merino subsequently pouncing and nudging to Oyarzabal - back in the team after testing positive for coronavirus antibodies prior to the Portugal game - to convert.

Sommer intervened to good effect just before the half-hour mark, though, producing a vital save after Ferran Torres met Jesus Navas' cross with a towering header.

Spain continued to spurn chances after the interval – Ansu Fati was wasteful twice in quick succession, as he was first thwarted by Nico Elvedi and then somehow failed to turn home from point-blank range with his second opportunity.

Sergio Ramos then led penalty appeals with 22 minutes to go, though they were unsurprisingly unsuccessful as the Spain captain's volley struck an arm from close range.

Switzerland did finally enjoy some pressure in the latter stages, but De Gea remained largely untested.

What does it mean? Spain still not quite convincing in the box

La Roja were not exactly bereft of creativity here – they managed to find their way through the Swiss backline on several occasions, but they were not clinical.

Of their 12 shots, only two were on target, and one of those was of course the goal, which only came about due to haplessness in the visitors' defence.

While Gerard Moreno and Rodrigo Moreno are both fine players in their own right, it seems Luis Enrique still needs to be won over given a winger in Oyarzabal was given the nod in a central role here.

Merino an effective presence

While one La Real star got the winner, another impressed in midfield. Merino was his typical blend of craft and guile here, as he played a couple of key passes (tied for the game high), including an assist, while he also made two tackles, two interceptions and gained possession 14 times, more than anyone else in red.

Sommer pays the price

In the end, Sommer's lapse in concentration in the first half proved decisive as it gifted Spain the lead and it was always going to be tough clawing it back.

What's next?

Spain go to Ukraine on Tuesday in their second of this month's Nations League double-header, while Switzerland face Germany in Cologne the same day.

Germany had a clanger from Georgi Bushchan to thank for their 2-1 win against Ukraine as Joachim Low's side finally won a Nations League match.

At their seventh attempt, Germany picked up a victory in the competition, but there were nervy moments during the closing stages in Kiev.

Matthias Ginter and Leon Goretzka gave the visitors a healthy 2-0 lead, with the latter nodding in from a couple of yards after Ukraine goalkeeper Bushchan practically dropped a cross onto his head.

The visitors were under pressure late on after Ruslan Malinovskiy's 76th-minute penalty gave Ukraine hope, but they held on.

Germany went ahead in the 20th minute as Ginter netted his second senior international goal, turning in a cross from Antonio Rudiger who danced around the right side of the Ukraine defence before delivering the ball low across the six-yard box.

Joshua Kimmich almost beat Bushchan from 25 yards, forcing the goalkeeper who conceded seven against France in midweek to tip over.

Germany looked sure to get another before half-time when Serge Gnabry's diving header from Ginter's clipped cross from the right arrived towards the near right corner, but Bushchan flung himself across to turn the ball wide.

Bushchan's calamitous blunder came in the 49th minute, when he made an awful mess of Lukas Klostermann's cross from the right flank, and Goretzka could not miss.

Julian Draxler should have scored a third goal for Germany 90 seconds later after Gnabry cut the ball into his path. The Paris Saint-Germain midfielder had time to set himself in the penalty area, but this time Bushchan made the save.

Ukraine's threat was minimal, but they had a lifeline when Roman Yaremchuk went down under Niklas Sule's challenge, earning a penalty.

Malinovskiy fired into the bottom-left corner, but Ukraine, backed by fervent, horn-blowing home support after the stadium was open to 30 per capacity, could not find a leveller.

England manager Gareth Southgate has stated his belief that young players should not be saddled with the “burden” of being likened to some of the game's greats in the wake of Jack Grealish being compared to Three Lions legend Paul Gascoigne.

Grealish was fielded from the start for the first time in his career under Southgate as England beat Wales 3-0 on Thursday, with the Aston Villa star's only other cap coming against Denmark in September, in which he entered the pitch as a late substitute.

The Birmingham local played a starring role in the clash with Ryan Giggs' outfit, delivering the assist for Dominic Calvert-Lewin's debut goal and providing an attacking threat with a style that has some drawing comparisons with Gazza.

And while Southgate feels that Grealish should savour the praise that comes his way, he feels that more emphasis should be put on the 25-year-old's individual qualities rather than how he matches up to others.

“I think he should enjoy it,” Southgate said. “He had an excellent performance the other night. When you make your England debut at Wembley, it is an occasion to cherish and to remember fondly. He is not an 18 or 19 year Jack, he is more experienced than that. 

“He is used to accolades, especially from his own supporters but he is highly thought of in the game. He'll be hungry to back up the performance the other night and to continue to show people what he is capable of.

“I am very conscious that I don’t want to dampen the enthusiasm for Jack. I always answer honestly about people and when you talk about Gascoigne, there’s not a player in English football history who was at that level in my opinion. 

“I don’t want that to be a criticism of Jack. I just think Gascoigne, who I played with, and I played with [Wayne] Rooney, [Steven] Gerrard, [Paul] Scholes, [David] Beckham and you could go on about phenomenal, amazing attacking players who won Champions Leagues, won 100 caps with England and who broke goalscoring records. 

“In many ways, I feel Gascoigne was so unique, and such an incredible player that I feel like I am talking about Bobby Moore. I think with young players who come through you shouldn’t burden or tag them by comparing them to someone else. Each one is unique with unique talents. 

“Jack has a style that is different to all those players I have mentioned and all the players in our squad. He handled the question maturely and I understand the comparison but I think Gascoigne, as an individual is just on another level to anything I played with.”

Napoli striker Victor Osimhen said he is aiming to become the African Footballer of the Year one day.

The Nigeria international disclosed that the personal feat remains a target for him after claiming the Caf Youth Player of the Year award in 2015, thanks to his goalscoring heroics at the Fifa U17 World Cup in Chile that year.

After making two appearances in the Serie A this season, Osimhen is hoping to establish himself at Napoli and join Nwankwo Kanu, Victor Ikpeba and Emmanuel Amuneke as the only Nigerians to have won the prestigious continental honour.

Last season, the 21-year-old was named the best African player in the Ligue 1 after his contribution of 13 goals in 27 matches for Lille.

“My dream is to become the African Footballer of the Year,” Osimhen said in a video posted by Napoli. “I still have a long way to go but I think I'm working towards that direction and I think I am on the right path.

“As a man, it won't be easy but I think having my own family will be a dream come true for me. I still have a long way to go so I'm not thinking about that now.

“Football is the only thing on my mind right now, I just want to keep focusing and of course, with my new club a lot is expected of me.”

Osimhen reflected on his ‘difficult’ childhood in Lagos, a state in the Southwestern part of Nigeria and how he beat all odds to take his football career to a professional level.

“If someone had told me three years ago that I would have played in one of the most important teams in the world, I wouldn’t have believed them,” he continued. “I had a difficult time at Wolfsburg, I was rejected by two Belgian teams and then I was picked up by Charleroi. My life was incredibly stressful at the time.

"About three years ago, if someone had told me I would have signed for Napoli, I would have replied that it would be impossible," he added. “Now, I believe nothing is impossible. I have continued to work and do my thing and I’m here. It’s a dream come true and I’m grateful for that."

A few months ago, the young forward announced the sudden death of his father and he is now an orphan having previously lost his mother at a very tender age.

Osimhen had to hawk through the streets of Lagos to survive the hustle and bustle of the city before he was scouted by the Nigeria youth team.

“I was born and raised in Lagos. I grew up in a place called Olosoun. I grew up in a very humble environment, it was very difficult for me," the former Wolfsburg forward said.

“My mother passed away when I was very young. Three months after my mom died, my father lost his job. It was a difficult time for me, my brothers and sisters.

“I had to go and sell water on the busy streets of Lagos to survive. Me and my brothers. It was very difficult, as was the place I came from. It’s a place where there’s no hope, where no one tells you to believe in yourself.”

Former Ghana international Frimpong Manso believes it may be too early to write off new Black Stars coach CK Akonnor after losing his first game at the helm against Mali on Friday.

In their first match of 2020, the Black Stars suffered a 3-0 defeat in an international friendly fixture against the Eagles in the Turkish city of Antalya.

Akonnor was appointed Ghana coach in January, replacing James Kwasi Appiah. He has had to wait until October to lead the team into action for the first time due to disruption of the international match calendar by the coronavirus pandemic.

"It's too early to say that coach CK Akonnor is not capable of handling the national team," Manso told Space FM. "It's just one match he has played. Let's have patience for him and support him."

Lining up in a 4-1-4-1 formation, Ghana were stung early in the game when Hamari Traore beat left-back Gideon Mensah to strike a shot past goalkeeper Lawrence Ati-Zigi in the third minute.

Traore then turned provider four minutes after half-time, setting up El Bilal Toure for the second goal of the match.

RB Leipzig midfielder Amadou Haidara then sealed the win with a cool finish 15 minutes before the end.

"It [4-1-4-1] a formation the players are used to in their various clubs, so it is not something new to them," Manso said on Akonnor's approach to the game, which has been criticised by a section of fans. "Some players are fading out so we need to bring new boys on board to fit it.

"Our lateral defenders did not impress me at all," he added. "Still, the lateral defenders problem we used to complain about still exists."

On the day, several players made their Ghana debut, including France-born defender Alexander Djiku, England-born Brentford winger Tariqe Fosu, Nordsjaelland attacker Kamaldeen Sulemana and the Israel-based Eugene Ansah.

The Black Stars will be hoping to make amends when they face 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar in a second friendly meeting in Turkey on Monday.

The two games form part of the Black Stars preparations for resumption of the 2022 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers in November when Akonnor's outfit will be taking on Sudan in a double-header.