National team: Demonstration of power in half one is sufficient: DFB-Elf achieves National League semi-final
First world class, then by the role and still trembled: thanks to 45 minutes of football demonstration, the national team has Italy forced and played in front of her home fans in June at the final Four for the winner’s cup in the Nations League. The title plans of national coaches Julian Nagelsmann become more specific a year before the World Cup in America. The intoxication of a perfect first half in the 3: 3 (3: 0) was massively clouded by too much sluggishness after the break.
With the best performance in the first half since the legendary 7: 1 against Brazil at the 2014 World Cup triumph, captain Joshua Kimmich, Magic Foot Jamal Musiala and the new Torgiart Tim Kleindienst in the quarter-final second leg a long overwhelmed Squadra Azzurra.
Memories of 4: 4 against Sweden
The former fear opponent seemed demoralized at half -time, but found it back into the game with German help. Suddenly, memories of the historic 4: 4 against Sweden came up in Dortmund after 4-0 lead a good twelve years ago. But this time the lead was enough – but only thanks to the 2-1 in the first leg of Milan.
In the once unloved UEFA competition, the DFB selection, which has been unbeaten since the EM-KO in eight games, continues with the semi-finals on June 4. Four days later in Munich the small title can be made perfect – as an appetizer for the big goal of the World Cup win 2026. The realization: In the form of the first half, the must DFB-Elf Before the competition from Argentina and Spain do not hide. Nagelsmann will have to work out the second 45 minutes.
Goretzka as the winner of the week
Kimmich in his 99th international game by penalty (30th minute), Musiala (36.) with a snotty corner gate, which fell too quickly even for the TV signal, and small service (45th) initially met in the first half before 64,762. Moise Kean (49./69.) Use the inaccuracies in the second half to the Italian signal to catch up. Joker Giacomo Raspadori (90.+5) equalized late with a penalty.
Nagelsmann had actually made the right personnel decisions. Leon Goretzka as the winner of the week and Angelo Stiller organized the superiority in midfield, Nico Schlotterbeck caused stability as the third central defender. But in the second half the inexplicable break came in.
On the anniversary of the fastest DFB goal in international history, the national team started again. After just 15 seconds, the Maximilian Mittelstädt, which was called into the starting eleven, had the first final opportunity. The returnee Goretzka also came to the end after around a minute freely at the Sixzehner, but narrowly moved away. Exactly a year ago, Wirtz had taken the lead at 2-0 in France after 7.92 seconds.
Captain Kimmich is progressing
The fact that Italy almost copied the early tour from the first leg over outdoor player Giovanni di Lorenzo was a marginal note in the atmospheric football temple. After the spectacular rescue act of Jonathan Tah, only the Nagelsmann team attacked until half-time.
Led by the two Bayern-Kumpels Kimmich and Goretzka, the DFB team pressed the eternal rivals into their own half with four World Cup titles. Although the team of coach Luciano Spalletti was under pressure after the defeat in Milan and needed goals, only Germany played.
What then happened within 15 minutes was playfully reminiscent of the biggest star hours in German football. Initially, Goretzka served the extremely present small service, which Alessandro Buongiorno had only to stop with a foul in the penalty area. Captain Kimmich progressed at the penalty and, for the first time since June 2023, converted a penalty for the DFB team.
Corner gate for the annual review
It was also Kimmich who provided five minutes later for a moment for all sports reviews. What happened? A ball boy threw the ball directly to Kimmich after the parade of Gianluigi Donnarumma.
He noticed Italy’s inattentiveness in the penalty area and played directly in the middle, where Bayern colleague Jamal Musiala was completely free and was able to complete the empty goal. At that time, Donnarumma had struggled with his forefenses and had gone to it. « I’ve been there for a long time, but I haven’t seen anything like it yet, » said the German record national player Lothar Matthäus RTL.
Italy now fell together and was punished with a third goal before half -time. After a remarkable combination, Kimmich chipped the ball from right into the middle, where small service played its air sovereignty and completed it 3-0. It was the fourth goal in the sixth international match for the striker of Borussia Mönchengladbach.
Everything is different after the break
While the German fans looked euphoric, the half -time whistle for Italy was like redemption. « Really horny 45 minutes. This performance was terrific. Italy’s team doesn’t even know what happened to her, » said Matthäus Freudig. When he wanted football festival for the national team in the unusually fine twine before the kick-off, he probably didn’t have such a scenario in his head. The break looked like a very hard break in the game. After the change of sides, the German enthusiasm suddenly gave way to uncertainty that led to some bad passes and technical mistakes.
Kean’s first goal followed a unclean pass from Leroy Sané. The AC Florence attacker, which was outstanding after the change, danced Tah again 20 minutes later and closed dry to 2: 3. When Di Lorenzo fell a few minutes later in the penalty area after a duel with Schlotterbeck and showed Szymon Marciniak to the penalty point, the German team looked in shock for a short time.
Marciniak received his decision again after viewing the video images. In order to create the memorable comeback within 45 minutes, Italy’s mortgage was too big after the first three halves. Raspadori’s penalty in injury time was late for Italy. (dpa)
