Germany wins 2:1 in Chicago – Portugal trembles for Leão

Early lead and robust equalizer

After the break, Leroy Sane became the match-winner. In the 57th minute, he finished off an assist from Havertz: "Avancierte mit Leroy Sane (57.) jener Akteur zum Matchwinner… Havertz hatte die Vorlage geliefert." Sane benefited from the injury-related World Cup absence of Lennart Karl and was allowed to try his luck from the start.

In stoppage time, there was another scuffle between both teams. "In der Nachspielzeit gab es eine Rudelbildung, Spieler beider Teams kamen aber mit Gelben Karten davon", it was reported. Manuel Neuer, who continues to be absent due to his calf injury, watched his team's ninth consecutive win and the 600th in DFB history from the bench.

Sane becomes the match-winner

In parallel, Portugal played its penultimate World Cup warm-up in Oeiras and won against Chile 2:1 (0:0). Cristiano Ronaldo and Co. prevailed on Saturday in Oeiras against Chile 2:1 (0:0). Leão had previously also hit the woodwork for the clearly superior hosts (9th minute).

Leão is sent off shortly before halftime

Shortly before the break, the match turned. "Der Stürmer hatte nach einer Rudelbildung, wie der Chilene Ivan Roman, kurz vor der Pause wegen einer Tätlichkeit die Rote Karte gesehen. Der Flügelspieler der AC Mailand hatte seinen Gegenspieler mehrfach geschubst und anschließend per Schlag ins Gesicht zu Boden gebracht", the source reported.

After the break, Goncalo Guedes, who came on at halftime for Ronaldo, (58th) slotted the ball past the Chilean goalkeeper after a pass from Rúben Neves. Midfielder Bruno Fernandes (75th) sealed the deal with a shot from around 20 meters. The Chileans, who did not qualify for the World Cup, at least managed some late consolation through Lucas Cepeda (92nd) in stoppage time.

The FIFA Disciplinary Committee, which has a large margin of discretion, will decide on the length of the ban. It therefore remains open whether Leão's suspension will also apply to competitive matches such as the World Cup beyond friendly matches.

Argentina hopes for Messi

Meanwhile, there is positive news from Argentina. Lionel Messi has returned to team training of the defending champions roughly two weeks after his muscle injury and could make brief appearances in the final two test matches. "Leo macht gute Fortschritte. Er trainiert nicht mehr separat. Er verbessert sich deutlich und könnte sogar für ein paar Minuten an einem der Vorbereitungsspiele teilnehmen. Es geht ihm viel besser, und das beruhigt uns", said coach Lionel Scaloni.

Argentina will test against Honduras on Saturday local time (Sunday 2:00 a.m. CEST) in College Station, Texas. The World Cup final warm-up takes place on Tuesday in Alabama against Iceland. The defending champions' opening match is on June 16 in Kansas City against Algeria, on June 22 they face Austria in Arlington.

Balerdi out of the World Cup

Things are not going as well for Argentina's defense: the 27-year-old center-back Leonardo Balerdi of Olympique Marseille has to miss out due to a muscle injury in his right calf. He had been capped eleven times so far. The Argentine association confirmed this on Saturday. Balerdi, who plays as a center-back at Olympique Marseille, will therefore miss the football World Cup starting Thursday in the USA, Mexico and Canada.

The German team looks to the tournament with confidence after the successful test in Chicago. With the 600th victory in DFB history behind them and a settled offense around Havertz and Sane, the Nagelsmann team travels to the World Cup with a broad chest. Portugal, on the other hand, must fear a possible suspension for its wing forward and at the same time worry about its sporting rhythm after the sending-off.