DFB squad masters "bizarre game" full of resistance
For the first time since the EURO 2016, the German football national team is in a quarterfinal at a major tournament. The team led by national coach Julian Nagelsmann had to overcome some obstacles - and remained difficult to grasp even after the game was over.
At the end, it culminated in a crazy five-minute journey. Joy, ecstasy, disappointment, anger: A few hundred seconds in the German home European Championship's eighteenth-finale are enough to tell these emotions. The German football national team advances to the quarterfinals for the first time in eight years with a 2:0 victory over Denmark. On an evening filled with many stories, some remain particularly memorable. There are thunderous natural disasters that cause interruptions, or the use of the latest technology, which completely changes the course of the game.
It could have all turned out differently. At 10:30 p.m., the ball suddenly ends up in the DFB team's goal. The Danes cheer, the goal music starts playing, defender Joachim Andersen turns to celebrate. Suddenly, in the 48th minute, it's 1:0 for Denmark. But, moment, the VAR speaks up. The ball really went in? Anxious seconds of waiting begin in Dortmund's Westfalenstadion. While referee Michael Oliver stares at the monitor on the sidelines, Danish fans start singing quietly. Then, 10:32 p.m.: Right in the midst of these quiet Danish songs, the German fans' jubilation erupts. Ecstasy and relief: The goal is disallowed. Offside.
It remains 0:0 in Dortmund's Westfalenstadion. And while everything is being sorted out again, the DFB team launches the next attack. From the left, David Raum crosses into the penalty area, the ball goes astray. But: Not even a minute after the great jubilation of relief, the three letters appear on the video screens: VAR. Referee Oliver points to his arm, while he runs back to the monitor again. The chip in the ball and the deflection on the green line provide the evidence: Definitely handball by Andersen, touching the ball with his arm. Only a few DFB players had noticed it in the stadium - and the highly sensitive technology.
What followed was quickly told. Penalty for the DFB team. Kai Havertz converts. 1:0, 53rd minute, 10:35 p.m. The stadium, the German substitutes' bench, national coach Julian Nagelsmann: Everything explodes. And the Danes? They sense that a sport that lives so much from emotion can suddenly be influenced by cold technology: While German fans are still celebrating the goal, UEFA shows images of the previous offside decision. Andersen may have been in the offside position at his goal. For the human eye, not noticeable. Danish coach Kasper Hjulmand was furious at the press conference, and his anger was understandable without translation.
"Es war ein verrücktes Fuenfminutenturnier," sagt Kai Havertz nach dem 2:0-Sieg der DFB-Elf gegen Dänemark im Achtelfinale der Heim-Europameisterschaft. "Wir hatten so viele Emotionen durchgemacht. Freude, Enttäuschung, Wut - alles in nur fünf Minuten."
"It was a crazy five-minute tournament," says Kai Havertz after the 2:0 win of the German national team against Denmark in the European Championship quarterfinals. "We had experienced so many emotions. Joy, disappointment, anger - all in just five minutes."
Just as in a game of all or nothing, everything flips after the first goal. It changes everything. The Danish fans, though in the minority, were just as loud as the people in the white and pink shirts with the Germany flags. National coach Nagelsmann spoke after the late 1:1 equalizer against Switzerland last week about how the goal had woken up the stadium. It was the same again. The Dortmund Westfalenstadion can have a very special energy, which was felt: Suddenly, the "White Wall" on the Southtribe cheered every save, every ball win of the DFB team.
And yet: National coach Nagelsmann found it hard to grasp the game after the final whistle. During the match, he seemed unusually tense: Constantly pacing back and forth through the designated zone in front of his bench, repeatedly fidgeting with his hands. Even after the 90 minutes were over, he couldn't quite get a handle on it. Nagelsmann spoke after the end of the game alternately of a "bizarre knockout game" that was "completely wave-like" or of a game "full of resistance." All of that was true.
For the first time during the home EM, he changed his starting eleven. In total, he made three substitutions. Dortmund's Nico Schlotterbeck replaced the yellow-carded Jonathan Tah and handled his task convincingly. For the unlucky Maximilian Mittelstadt, room was made in the first team. Surprisingly, Bayern star Leroy Sané started instead of the recently inconspicuous Florian Wirtz. However, there was no change on the central striker position: Niclas Füllkrug remained his joker role, while Havertz resumed his place instead.
But not "Mr. Kachelmann"
Despite the lineup change, the DFB team plays well into the quarterfinals. The newcomers integrate seamlessly, especially Sané is not sparing himself for a sprint. The first 20 minutes were, from the perspective of the national trainer, the best of his team in the tournament so far. However, while the DFB team dominates the game, the ominous signs appear in the Dortmund evening sky. First, dark clouds, then occasional lightning, and eventually a loud bang. Panic ensues in the lower rows as raincoats are pulled out. Downpour, game interruption. The teams leave the field.
Wind and rain lash through the stadium, enormous water masses cascade down from the roof behind the corner flags. The German fans in the lower stands huddle together. Special moments arise: At some point, the people in the Westfalenstadion sing self-deprecatingly "Oh, how beautiful," while the sound of rain on the stadium roof is heard. On the press tribune, smartphones are eagerly used to film, two Danish fans dance naked in the waterfalls falling from the roof.
Nagelsmann will be asked later at the press conference in English: Was the interruption too late? Was it at the right time? The national coach shakes his head, he doesn't know. After all, he is not "Mr. Kachelmann", the weather expert. But what football expert Mr. Nagelsmann knew: His team did not benefit unconditionally from the 25-minute interruption. The German team plays promisingly after the interruption, but then loses focus a bit. The Danes come into the game better and even have a big chance just before half-time.
And now? Tournament favorite?
The game turns after the break. Above all, due to the double VAR mistake of the Danes, which ends with the 1:0 of the German team. After that, everything becomes easier - on the benches and on the pitch: Denmark has to loosen up its defense, giving the German team a lot of space. Toni Kroos no longer gets constantly harassed. In the 68th minute, then, all the dams break: Jamal Musiala scores the 2:0 after a long ball. Beer mugs fly over the stands, German fans in the stadium are already singing about Berlin, the final location.
Perhaps that's a bit hasty. After all, not only this "wavy" game, but also this German team is still hard to grasp. On which wave is it surfing? How stable is it? Sometimes it plays its opponents against the wall, sometimes it looks very fragile. The defense with captain Antonio Rüdiger has not yet been put to a real stress test - not even in the round of 16. The games against Switzerland and Denmark have shown, however, how dependent the national team is on Kroos. Without him, little works, almost nothing, especially when he was taken out of the game. A real Plan B is still lacking.
And yet: The national coach is satisfied. The German team climbs another step in the tournament bracket, makes the next step in its learning process. After the spectacular 5:1 against Scotland, the 2:0 win against the physical Hungarians, and the Plan B-1:1 against Switzerland, it is the next lesson. The German team wins even in a psychologically challenging game. The long thunderstorm interruption and also the nervous VAR minutes are not easy to process. Nagelsmann said, "They deserve it, the team. They have finally erased the old hard drive and understood how good they really are." While the national coach says this, a new storm is raging outside.
The German national soccer team, led by coach Julian Nagelsmann, secured their place in the quarterfinals of the European Football Championship 2024 with a 2:0 win over Denmark. The victory came after a controversial VAR decision that overturned a Danish goal due to handball.
Despite the challenging game against Denmark, coach Nagelsmann expressed satisfaction with his team's performance, saying they had erased their old hard drive and understood their true potential. This win follows their previous successes, including a 2:0 victory over Hungary and a 1:1 draw against Switzerland.
In the quarterfinals, the German national team will face Denmark once again, this time with the home advantage at the European Football Championship 2024. This rematch promises to be an exciting and closely-contested match between two strong European soccer teams.
