News (engl.)

Germany’s U21 national team suffered a 2-1 defeat to Belgium in Essen last night. In front of 10,107 spectators at the Stadion an der Hafenstraße, Muhammed Damar equalised for head coach Antonio Di Salvo’s side in the 25th minute, but goals from Julien Duranville (8’) and Romeo Vermant (65’) secured victory for Belgium.

“We gave them two chances, and they scored from both. That’s frustrating because we also had plenty of opportunities at the other end – there was more in this game for us. We tried to press aggressively and win the ball back high up the pitch,” said Anton Kade after the match. “Belgium hardly played their way out from the back and instead went long a lot. We won possession back plenty of times, but we have to make those opportunities count. We’ve lost today, and it doesn’t feel good.”

Two debutants in the starting line-up

The DFB side started with Dennis Seimen in goal, with captain Joshua Quarshie and Nnamdi Collins forming the centre-back pairing. Elias Baum and Hennes Behrens, making his U21 debut, occupied the full-back positions. In midfield, Di Salvo selected debutant Cajetan Lenz and Noel Aseko in defensive roles, with Anton Kade and Damar operating further forward. Dzenan Pejcinovic and Paris Brunner led the line as a strike partnership.

Kade had the first shot of the game following a free kick in the second minute, but his effort was blocked. Belgium then settled into a compact shape and looked to break forward at pace. Julien Duranville came close to finding the target from the edge of the box in the sixth minute, with his effort narrowly missing the goal. Just two minutes later, however, Seimen was beaten as Duranville converted after excellent build-up play from Lucas Stassin.

Damar levels with a clever free-kick

Germany enjoyed a clear advantage in possession but lacked the cutting edge in the final third. A cross from Behrens narrowly missed the top corner in the 20th minute. The equaliser eventually came from a set piece: Damar cleverly sent a free-kick from a central position underneath the Belgian wall and into the net. Damar almost doubled Germany’s lead shortly afterwards, but his deflected effort was kept out by Belgian goalkeeper Luca Brughmans (28’).

The midfielder had another excellent opportunity in the 37th minute, striking the crossbar with a free-kick from a tight angle. At the other end, Germany were fortunate when the inside of the post came to their rescue after a misplaced pass in their build-up play allowed Stassin to shoot past the stranded Seimen (45’).

The game looked a little quieter at the start of the second half, although Germany continued to control proceedings. The first real opening came in the 58th minute, when Damar struck the crossbar once again, this time with a delicate chip after finding himself one-on-one with Brughmans. Kade then came close to putting Germany ahead, narrowly heading wide from Pejcinovic’s cross.

Belgium strike against the run of play

Laurin Ulrich, Mert Kömür and debutant Maurice Krattenmacher were all introduced shortly after the hour mark, with Damar, Aseko and Kade making way (63’). Germany then unexpectedly found themselves behind again. Following an attack down the left, substitute Vermant found himself unmarked and fired through Seimen’s legs to restore Belgium’s lead in the 65th minute.

Germany pushed for another equaliser, with Krattenmacher testing Brughmans from a tight angle in the 72nd minute. Kömür was also unable to beat the Belgian goalkeeper a minute later. Di Salvo made further changes in the closing stages, bringing on Tom Rothe, Leandro Morgalla and a fourth debutant in Louey Ben Farhat for Quarshie, Baum and Pejcinovic in the 79th minute. Max Moerstedt then replaced Lenz in the 86th minute.
Despite a late spell of sustained pressure, Germany were unable to find an equaliser. Collins’ header in the 90th minute proved to be their final opportunity.