Tag: Nathan Tella

Nigerian striker Nathan Tella grabbed an assist and had a goal disallowed in Bayer Leverkusen’s 2-0 win over Augsburg at the BayArena on Saturday.

Leverkusen are still mathematically capable of winning the Bundesliga title, ending Augsburg’s unbeaten away league start to 2025 at eight games.

It always felt as though only a win would be enough to keep some life in the tattered remains of Leverkusen’s title defence, but they certainly did their bit in the 13th minute, when some slick movement down the right saw Tella square first time for Patrik Schick to charge forward and put a rocket of a shot past Finn Dahmen.

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That made it successive goal-scoring matches for the Czech striker, while extending Augsburg’s wait to notch a record-breaking 12th Bundesliga clean sheet in a single season.

Augsburg rallied slightly, but Leverkusen were clearly eager to make no further additions to drop points from a lead for an eighth time this campaign.

Tella in particular embodied that, and appeared to turn goalscorer just over 10 minutes later, tapping in at the far post from an Alejandro Grimaldo cross, but a VAR-backed offside call cut his celebrations quickly.

And there was also unwelcome, but not unexpected, news from Munich, as Bayern took the lead in their clash with Mainz to restore their eight-point cushion over Die Werkself.

Bayern Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso has confirmed that Nathan Tella, the Nigerian forward, will be fit to return to the pitch against FC St. Pauli on Sunday after a head injury against Union Berlin.

Tella, a key figure for the Bundesliga champions, sustained a blow to the head during the goalless draw against Union Berlin and later experienced dizziness. However, hospital tests confirmed it was not a concussion.

The Nigerian International returned to training this week, and he’s now in contention to play a part against FC St. Pauli on Sunday, according to the former Liverpool midfielder.

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Speaking to the club, Xabi Alonso revealed Nathan Tella, Florian Wirtz, and other injured players are ready to return, except long-term injured players Jeanuel Belocian, Martin Terrier, and Mario Hermoso.

When asked at the pre-match press conference whether Tella still had any issues, Xabi Alonso responded with a brief, “No problem.”

Tella has been a standout player for Bayern Leverkusen, scoring four goals and providing three assists in 35 matches across all competitions to put the Bundesliga champions in contention to retain their title.

The 25-year-old will hope to continue his fine form and possibly earn a return to the Super Eagles ahead of the Unity Cup tournament in London in June.

The unavailability of Bayer Leverkusen attacker, Nathan Tella, from the 23-man squad of the Super Eagles that will face Rwanda on Friday has been welcomed in Rwanda.

The New Times of Rwanda celebrated the pulling out of Tella as the lead story on its sports page.

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Tella was an unused substitute in Bayer Leverkusen’s UEFA Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich on Tuesday owing to injury.

Nigeria’s coach, Eric Chelle has promptly moved by calling up Jordan Torunarigha as a replacement.

Torunarigha, who plays for Gent in Belgium, is a son of former Shooting Stars player, Ojokojo Torunarigha.

ScoreNigeria can exclusively report that Bayer Leverkusen winger Nathan Tella and FC Porto defender Zaidu Sanusi have made the Super Eagles final 23-man squad for must-win 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Rwanda and Zimbabwe.

Both Tella and Zaidu are making long-awaited return to the national team.

Tella, 25, made his international debut against Zimbabwe in a 2026 World Cup qualifier on November 19, 2023.

He played the first 45 minutes of the qualifier in Rwanda and has since not featured for Nigeria.

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This season, he has scored two goals and made two assists in 19 appearances in the Bundesliga for champions Leverkusen.

Zaidu, on the other hand, last played for the country in the 2023 AFCON final against hosts Cote d’Ivoire in February 2024.

The 27-year-old leftback, who has won 22 caps for the Super Eagles, has been left out of the national team setup due to another long-term injury.

Nathan Tella was one of the stars for German champions Bayer Leverkusen, with Super Eagles teammate Victor Boniface on the bench for most of their comprehensive win against Frankfurt.

The Nigerian, who was one of Leverkusen’s most active players, opened the scoring with a clever run behind the Eintracht backline, firing a shot into the bottom left corner.

Tella’s goal was the first of four in a blistering first half for Leverkusen. Mukiele doubled the lead with a close-range finish, and Patrik Schick added a third, showing the visitors’ attacking ability.

Despite a late consolation goal from Hugo Ekitiké, Leverkusen restored their three-goal advantage through a stunning strike from García.

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Despite his impressive record against Eintracht Frankfurt, Victor Boniface started on the bench.

He was introduced in the 78th minute, replacing Tella, as Leverkusen looked to maintain their momentum.

Boniface had previously scored three goals in as many league meetings with Frankfurt, all resulting in Leverkusen wins.

Leverkusen’s victory extends their unbeaten away run to 28 matches, a new Bundesliga record.

This achievement is a testament to Xabi Alonso’s tactical acumen and the team’s resilience on the road.

Super Eagles forward Nathan Tella has expressed his disappointment at Bayer Leverkusen’s two dropped points in their goalless draw against league leaders Bayern Munich on Saturday at home.

Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso sent tongues wagging  after deploying the Nigerian in a centre-forward role ahead of more established strikers like the in-form Patrik Schick and Victor Boniface.

But Tella was unlucky not to get on the score sheet, hitting the woodwork in the first half shortly after Jeremie Frimpong’s effort. He also went close with an acrobatic attempt that narrowly missed the target in the second half before being denied again by a goal-line clearance.

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Leverkusen were the better side for large stretches of the game, repeatedly breaking Bayern down but failing to find the decisive goal. The result leaves them eight points adrift of the defending champions, who now have a firm grip on the Bundesliga title race.

Despite his frustration, Tella remained positive and urged his team to build on their strong display.

“It was a very good game, but it feels like we lost at 0-0,” the 25-year-old said “I missed a few chances, and I’m very disappointed about that. But as a team, we can be proud of how we played. We have to use that as motivation for the upcoming games.”

Tella has scored three goals and registered three assists in 30 appearances across all competitions for Leverkusen this season.

Super Eagles attacker Nathan Tella has won Bayer Leverkusen ‘s January Goal of the Month award for his brilliant strike in a 3-2 win against Borussia Dortmund.

Tella’s first  goal in the Bundesliga this season was a masterpiece  in precision and skill. The strike came early in the game against Dortmund when he got a header from Robert Andrich at the edge of the box, before unleashing a sublime first-time volley that soared into the net, leaving the opposition stunned.

Tella’s astonishing strike ignited a goal-scoring frenzy for Leverkusen with Patrick Schick quickly doubling the lead. However, Jamie Bynoe-Gittens rapidly responded with a goal, narrowing the gap within a thrilling first 15 minutes. Schick’s second goal re-established a comfortable advantage, and a late consolation goal from Serhou Guirassy proved insufficient for Dortmund to salvage a point.

The dramatic victory extended Bayer Leverkusen’s impressive winning streak to nine consecutive games across all competitions, a remarkable run that ultimately came to an end with a 2-1 defeat to Atletico Madrid in the Champions League.

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Since scoring against Dortmund, Tella has not netted in the Bundesliga and he will hope to rediscover his scoring boots when Leverkusen host Bayern Munich in a must-win game for their title aspirations this weekend.

Tella has already proven himself to be a thorn in Bayern Munich’s side this season, scoring the decisive goal that eliminated them from the DFB Pokal. As such, Xabi Alonso may be counting on Tella to deliver again in a high-stakes match, leveraging his ability to rise to the occasion and score crucial goals in big games.

Winning the January goal of the month award is likely to give Tella a significant confidence boost, which he’ll aim to capitalize on as Bayer Leverkusen seek to win titles, push to retain their Bundesliga crown and make a strong Champions League run.

 Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Nathan Tella has hinted that  his  Nigerian compatriot, Victor Boniface,  was instrumental  to  the solitary  goal he scored on Tuesday night which eliminated Bayern Munich from the German Cup.

Leverkusen on Tuesday night  defeated Bayern Munich in the DFB Pokal 1-0 with Tella scoring the decisive goal in the 69^th   minute barely eight minutes after his introduction.

While speaking after the game, the skilful winger said watching Boniface regularly has helped him.

“It’s not easy, especially when they went a man down; we were not too excited about it; we just put our foot down and stayed in the game,” Tella told the club’s official website. “I have watched Victor Boniface a lot, so when I got the ball in the box, I knew what to do, and I found the position, and I was able to score.”

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Leverkusen won the competition last season with Tella contributing immensely to the achievement and they are through to the quarter final of the competition again.

Meanwhile, Tella has admitted it has been a frustrating start to the season for him with very little game time after he came through as Bayer Leverkusen cup hero.

 “I’ll be honest, it’s been a really frustrating start to the season…but I can’t argue with the coach [Xabi Alonso]. He knows what’s best for the team,” Tella said in reference to his limited game time this season.