A late Niclas Füllkrug header has ensured Germany have progressed to the knockout stages of their home Euros from top spot in Group A, their 1-1 draw with Switzerland ensuring not only a theoretically weaker next up opponent, but also allowing the positivity around their prospects to endure.
After following their opening night blitz of Scotland with a 2-0 win over Hungary, Julian Nagelsmann’s side almost came unstuck against Switzerland in Frankfurt. Trailing by a goal for the better part of an hour after Dan Ndoye’s opener, it took until the 92nd minute for Füllkrug to find the response and seal top spot.
‘Switzerland was always going to be the first big test, the best team they’d played yet and perhaps the first at the level of this Germany side, which is still clearly not perfect’ Kit Holden of The Athletic and Der Tagesspiegel told Box2Box.
‘Germany are hoping momentum can carry them but in some ways this was the best thing that could happen. They went behind… and in the end responded fantastically, grabbed the late equaliser and qualified as group winners. The mood was very positive afterwards.
‘Obviously, if they don’t find that equaliser then they’d have stumbled at the first test and the mood would have been very different. They’re fine margins, but Nagelsmann and his team will look at it and think that’s what wins tournaments, and so far they’ve done pretty much everything right.’
A likely quarter-final against Spain awaits should Die Mannschaft navigate their next opponent, the second placed finisher in Group C, which will be decided tonight as England play Slovenia and Denmark meet Serbia.
That means the outside possibility of a meeting with England at this stage of a second consecutive European Championship, and chance to atone for their 2021 loss, only to occur should the Three Lions draw with Slovenia while Denmark beat Serbia by enough to climb into top spot on goal difference.
‘I think they’d want to avoid England. The real hope in this competition is that they’d get at least to the quarter-finals. It’s quite likely they’d face Spain, and they’ll want to avoid playing one of those really big opponents more than once in the knockout stages.
‘Germany are a weaker team [than England] and need to have that positive, hell for leather attitude in their home tournament, whereas England are a much stronger team with a lot more to lose. A few injury niggles, problems in certain positions, it’s a different sort of tournament management.
‘Naglesmann knows the key thing for his team is momentum and positivity, both within the group and from the stands, and so far it seems he’s been able to channel that. I still think we’re yet to see which of these approaches bears more fruit in the knockout stages.’
‘That said, I don’t think anyone is underestimating a Denmark team, that reached the semi-finals of the Euros last time out and showed against England they can frustrate top teams. Slovenia and Serbia are the ones they’d like to face, but even then this German side knows they have enough weaknesses, things that need ironing out, that it has to be wary of any opposition, really.’