This is how Julian Nagelsmann envisioned the start of the European Championship year. Not only does he score the fastest DFB goal against favorites France. The national coach is the winner of the evening.
That finally whets the appetite for the European Championship: after Florian Wirtz’s record-breaking goal, the national soccer team not only stunned the big title favorites France with their best performance in years. The 2:0 (1:0) on Saturday evening was the first German victory in France for more than eleven years and a powerful encouragement for the home tournament in just under three months. Julian Nagelsmann’s radical changes worked immediately. The national coach goes into the hot European Championship countdown as the big winner of the evening.
After seven seconds, Wirtz scored the fastest goal in German international match history, assisted by the outstanding DFB returnee Toni Kroos. Kai Havertz (49) scored early in the second half after a wonderful combination between the young stars Wirtz and Jamal Musiala. With great concentration and team spirit, the Équipe Tricolore’s soccer machine around superstar Kylian Mbappé was brought to a halt.
The next endurance test is already scheduled for Tuesday. Then arch-rivals the Netherlands, who have just defeated Germany’s opening opponents in the European Championship, Scotland, 4:0, will come to Frankfurt. Nagelsmann will then consistently continue his new approach.
In a small block on the sidelines, the national coach repeatedly took notes on his much-changed selection. The national coach cheered Wirtz’s stroke of genius with an energetic look – his “We’re kicking” directive could hardly have been better implemented at the start. From the kick-off, the ball came to the Leverkusen player, who scored a fantastic first goal of the European Championship year from 20 meters – a blink of an eye faster than the previous record holder Lukas Podolski eleven years ago against Ecuador
In front of 1,000 German fans, the early goal gave the DFB team a sense of stability and security they had hardly thought possible. With the returning Kroos setting the pace in midfield, commitment and, in particular, concentration were right in the first half. Debutant Maximilian Mittelstädt started at left-back as if he already had several international matches behind him.
European Championship favorites France first had to find their way back into the game – that alone must have pleased Nagelsmann. “Not like a rabbit in front of a snake” and with a “willingness to take risks”, the 36-year-old said on ZDF shortly before kick-off. The national coach’s self-image had by no means reached the team after the highly disappointing November defeats in Berlin against Turkey (2:3) and in Vienna against Austria (0:2).
Marc-André ter Stegen, who was deputizing for Manuel Neuer, who was injured again at the European Championships, made a strong save to deny the world champions’ star player Kylian Mbappé’s first good chance (25′). The DFB team combined their efforts to block the subsequent attempts. The attacking line of captain Ilkay Gündogan, Wirtz and Musiala, elevated by Nagelsmann to “three magicians”, also worked defensively in the truest sense of the word. Musiala’s first conspicuous scene was a save in his own half.
But as we all know, the Munich man can do things differently. The 21-year-old set up Germany’s second goal through Havertz perfectly by dancing past France goalkeeper Brice Samba. Wirtz had played the powerful long pass to Musiala beforehand. France were surprised again and Nagelsmann, whose contract expires after the European Championships and will be discussed after the international match against the Netherlands, applauded.
Andrich strong – debuts for Anton and Undav
Loud whistles could be heard in the stadium just under an hour into the game, with the French side having to rely on individual actions up to this point, such as the shot from former Dortmund player Ousmane Dembélé (54′). Nagelsmann received the first yellow card of the game at this stage for complaining too loudly about a refereeing decision (60′). His fellow coach Didier Deschamps did not appear to be satisfied and substituted four players after an hour.
Nagelsmann, on the other hand, gave his eleven more minutes to settle. Musiala, Wirtz, Gündogan and Havertz repeatedly tried combinations. Behind them, Kroos and, above all, the combative Leverkusen player Robert Andrich provided cover. In the 72nd minute, Chris Führung came on for his second international match and veteran Thomas Müller entered the fray. Mittelstädt narrowly missed scoring his debut goal with a low shot (79′), before Deniz Undav was introduced shortly afterwards as the second debutant of the evening (80′).
The Stuttgart man, Müller and substitute Niclas Füllkrug had further chances to score a third goal in the closing stages. At the back, Antonio Rüdiger saved on the line shortly before the end (88′) and Waldemar Anton also celebrated his DFB debut (90′).