In a repeat of the European championship finals of 2017 and 2019, the new generation of Germany U21s drew 1-1 with their Spanish counterparts on Thursday evening in Cordoba. Nico Schlotterbeck equalised in the 32nd minute after Manu García had put Spain ahead in the tenth.
DFB U21 head coach Stefan Kuntz had to make do without Ridle Baku and Robin Hack through injury before kick-off, the latter of whom scored a hat-trick in the recent qualifier against Wales. The game was hard work for the young Germans from the get-go; the Spaniards pressed them early on and disrupted any flow to the passing game. Despite a similarly aggressive off-ball approach from Germany, it was the hosts who enjoyed the better of the chances and took the lead after ten minutes thanks to an unstoppable strike from Garcia.
Schlotterbeck levels
The Germany U21s’ first chance of the game fell to Makan Baku soon after the opener, but with the wind in their sails, Spain continued to dominate the game and could have doubled their lead through Olmo on two occasions. Thanks in part to Spain’s squandered chances, Germany found their way into the game when Nico Schlotterbeck took advantage of some sloppy defending and poked in the equaliser.
The equaliser put the game very-much in the balance, and the eight half-time substitutions for Germany did not change that. If anything, Kuntz’s changes seemed to have swung things in his favour, but Spain continued to pose danger going forward. Both sides would have felt a second goal was deserved. When Kiomourtzoglou was sent off for a second yellow-card offence in the 90th minute, his teammates had to stand strong for stoppage time to hold onto the draw, a fair result, all things considered.
In a repeat of the European championship finals of 2017 and 2019, the new generation of Germany U21s drew 1-1 with their Spanish counterparts on Thursday evening in Cordoba. Nico Schlotterbeck equalised in the 32nd minute after Manu García had put Spain ahead in the tenth.
DFB U21 head coach Stefan Kuntz had to make do without Ridle Baku and Robin Hack through injury before kick-off, the latter of whom scored a hat-trick in the recent qualifier against Wales. The game was hard work for the young Germans from the get-go; the Spaniards pressed them early on and disrupted any flow to the passing game. Despite a similarly aggressive off-ball approach from Germany, it was the hosts who enjoyed the better of the chances and took the lead after ten minutes thanks to an unstoppable strike from Garcia.
Schlotterbeck levels
The Germany U21s’ first chance of the game fell to Makan Baku soon after the opener, but with the wind in their sails, Spain continued to dominate the game and could have doubled their lead through Olmo on two occasions. Thanks in part to Spain’s squandered chances, Germany found their way into the game when Nico Schlotterbeck took advantage of some sloppy defending and poked in the equaliser.
The equaliser put the game very-much in the balance, and the eight half-time substitutions for Germany did not change that. If anything, Kuntz’s changes seemed to have swung things in his favour, but Spain continued to pose danger going forward. Both sides would have felt a second goal was deserved. When Kiomourtzoglou was sent off for a second yellow-card offence in the 90th minute, his teammates had to stand strong for stoppage time to hold onto the draw, a fair result, all things considered.
