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Thomas Müller has to comfort Joshua Kimmich after the final whistle
Photo:
JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP
Scene of the game:
Thomas Müller marched for half an eternity. After a bad pass from England's Raheem Sterling, Kai Havertz sent the DFB striker steeply. And then Müller ran, he ran and ran, meter by meter, alone towards the gate. You could almost think about which corner to shoot in. That evening at Wembley, Müller played for the 26th time in a row in a game at a European Championship or a World Cup, a record value for the DFB. Then the 31-year-old decided for the left corner, but the shot in the 81st minute just missed. It could have equaled the 1-1 draw in the European Championship round of 16. It wasn't him.
Result of the game:
England scored another goal after Müller's miss. Then it was over, then Joshua Kimmich wept in the field. The game at Wembley ended 0-2 (0-0) from a German point of view. England can continue to hope for the title, the next opponent is the winner of the duel between Sweden and Ukraine on Saturday. It's over for the German team.
After work:
This also ends Joachim Löw's time as national coach, who had headed the German national team as head coach since 2006. The high point under his direction was the 2014 World Cup title, the low point was the embarrassing qualifying round in Russia 2018. And, that's now for sure, his time at the DFB ends without a European title. Löw called the end of the ARD a “huge disappointment”. One thing is certain: only in the duel against Portugal could the DFB-Elf fully convince at the EM. There were a total of seven goals against in four games, a tremendous draw against Hungary, a weak offensive against France. This is not a top record.
Off through the middle:
The whistles and boos during the national anthem, the away game at Wembley, none of that seemed to inhibit the German team. The duel between the rivals began with Leon Goretzka, Thomas Müller and Timo Werner in the German starting XI. Löw hoped that the changes would bring more "depth, no frills and straightforwardness". And he should get it first, especially from Goretzka. With offensive sprints through the middle, force in a duel and a first early shot on goal (albeit unplaced), the 26-year-old quickly set the first scent marks in the attack.
Only the individual actions are nice:
none of the teams really got going. The German team had individual actions here and there, like in the 32nd minute when Havertz had staged fellow player Werner. But there was no real flow of the game, no DFB team developing a real timetable. England got a little more control into the game. After a good initial phase of the DFB-Elf the "Three Lions" moved out clearly, stood higher, and this shift blocked the German team's way through the middle. A long-range shot by Raheem Sterling forced Manuel Neuer to defend himself (16 minutes), shortly afterwards a header from Harry Maguire caused danger. But that was it - almost.
The tackle of Wembley:
There was one more excitement, in stoppage time of the first half. Thomas Müller played a bad pass in the build-up, and then it happened quickly. Sterling set the pace, pulled into the middle and attracted three DFB kickers, then the ball went out to Harry Kane and he was almost past Neuer. But not to Mats Hummels. With a tackle, the defender of Borussia Dortmund came before Kane to the ball and pushed him out of the box. "Big action", ARD commentary Florian Nass shouted into the microphone. No contradiction.
Man, Harry:
Kane lay there after the scene, stunned he looked at the lawn, and maybe he couldn't explain to himself that he hadn't shot directly. The Tottenham attacker only had nine ball contacts in the first half and had to be treated in the second. It is said that great strikers can be signed off for 90 minutes - and in the end they strike. But at that moment, he had no luck against Hummels. On the other hand: only 45 minutes had been played.
Mail from Norway:
Erling Haaland, the Norwegian striker from Borussia Dortmund, reported during the half-time break. He wrote on Twitter: “Time to bring Sancho.” Time to bring Jadon Sancho, his team-mate from BVB, the 21-year-old offensive vortex - which has hardly played a role at the European Championships. Gareth Southgate did not grant Haaland this wish. The English coach is defensive and has been criticized for it.
With Grealish the Power:
The game didn't deserve a beauty award. There was a strong shot from Havertz shortly after the restart, but that was again just a single action. In the 68th minute then the pick-me-up - for England. Jack Grealish came into the game and suddenly the whole arena was cheering. The man from Aston Villa stands for the offensive, for surprises and creativity. It was Grealish seven minutes later, who after a pass from Kane passed out to Luke Shaw on the left. His flat cross pushed Sterling past Neuer in the middle from four meters - 1-0.
Corona cheers
:
Almost
no masks, little distance, party atmosphere - this is what it looked like in the stands around the opening goal. The Delta variant is spreading further in Great Britain and the seven-day incidence recently climbed to a value of 170. There would have been arguments to keep the audience limit at Wembley at at least 20,000 fans per game, as was the case in the preliminary round has been the case. Instead - even after pressure from Uefa - 45,000 fans were allowed against Germany. Read a comment on the subject here.
The decision:
Then Kane still had his goal scorer moment, in the 86th minute he scored the 2-0 with his head - and thus his first ever goal at this European Championship.
There seemed to be a burden on the England captain, now it had fallen from him.
Outlook
: In the future, Hansi Flick will look after the German national team.
The DFB team has a lot of individual quality.
The task of the upcoming national coach will be to develop a team from this - with a clearer game idea.
Qualification for the 2022 World Cup continues on September 2nd.