Spain vs Germany is one of the most intriguing matches of the European Championship quarter-finals. Some experts even call it a hidden ending.
Lehmann called Spain a youth team. Not appreciated even at home.
Former Germany goalkeeper Jens Lehmann (the team’s main goalkeeper at the 2006 World Cup and Euro 2008) warmed up the crowd before the match with a harsh statement. “The Spaniards are too small and inexperienced. In fact, this is essentially a youth team. For example, up front they have Lamin Yamal and Nico Williams, who are very young. The Spaniards have little international experience, especially in the central players.”
Jens Lehman
Photo: Frédéric Scheidemann/Getty Images
Lehmann’s words caused a great resonance. Spanish journalists criticised the former goalkeeper for his careless statement.
Serrano Whip: It is very German to provoke like Lehmann did. We do not come up with such things. Germans have no internal filter. They say what they think.
Ramon Alvarez de Mont: Germany is far from the most experienced team. The fact is that there are hardly any players left in their squad who won gold at the 2014 World Cup. The current German team has not won anything at international level, despite the presence of veterans such as Tony Cross or youngsters such as Florian Wirtz or Jamal Musiala. Spain is at about the same level, but is still dominant and plays more intense football with players such as Lamin Yamal and Nico Williams.
Emilio Perez de Rosas: In the modern world of football, many people consider themselves experts. Former footballers often act as analysts and commentators. I got the impression that some of them go out on the street so that people only talk about them.
Inma Lydon: This is the bravado of a former footballer. I think the atmosphere in the German national team is completely different, because Ilkay Gundogan himself spoke with respect about the Spanish national team. I think Lehmann’s words are part of the show. A way of expressing yourself again. The players who take to the field will not say anything like that.
Nicholas Linner, journalist for German Bild: I think Lehmann lost his cool. You can only call Spain a youth team if you’re not watching the Euros. However, I consider Germany to be a slight favourite. The Spanish national team’s defence doesn’t look impenetrable.
Midfielder for the German national team Toni Kroos Lehmann does not share the former goalkeeper’s opinion: “Lehmann expressed his own point of view. He does not represent the German national team now. He always has a slightly different opinion to others. I do not agree that Spain has a team that is too young. They have Rodri, Alvaro Morata, Nacho, Dani Carvajal in their squad, players with plenty of experience.”
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Joselu hopes Kroos retires. Tony is not offended
Next in the spotlight was Spain striker Joselu. He said that his team wants to retire Kroos. By the way, they spent last season together at the same club: Real Madrid. The German footballer has been saying for some time that the European Championship will be the last tournament of his career. After that, the midfielder will say goodbye to football as a player.
Toni Kroos in a press conference before the match with Spain
Photo: Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images
“I hope this is Kroos’ last game. We have a tough game ahead of us against a strong opponent. I spoke a lot with Tony and he gave me a lot of advice. He is a key player for the German national team. I hope he will retire after Friday’s game. We want to do this,” Joselu said at a press conference.
This was followed by Kroos’ own response. “It’s normal that he said that, because the Spaniards want to win the tournament. I will do everything I can to prevent this from happening. They want to win a trophy, we have the same objective. I understand what Joselu meant. The most important thing is that he didn’t want my career to end at Madrid.”
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Current Euro 2024 playoff bracket. All quarter-finalists are known!
Germany has not beaten Spain for a long time and has problems with the hosts of major tournaments.
Interestingly, Germany has not beaten Spain in an official match since 1988. Yes, yes, more than 30 years! At the European Championship at home, the Germans defeated their group rivals 2:0, and then something went wrong. After that, the teams met three times at the World Cup. In 1994 and 2022, the teams drew with the same score 1:1, and in 2010, the Germans lost 0:1. At Euro 2008, the Spanish defeated the Germans 1:0 and reached the final. The teams also met twice in 2020 in the Nations League. La Furia Roja defeated their rival at home 6:0, and in Germany they drew 1:1.
But there are other statistics that no longer favour the Spaniards. Marca called it a curse. The fact is that Spain played the hosts in nine major tournaments (World and European Championships). Guess how many games the Spaniards won? Nobody! We curl our fingers.
1934 World Cup. Italy – Spain (1:1, replay – 1:0). 1950 World Cup. Brazil – Spain – 6:1. 1980 UEFA Euro. Spain – Italy – 0:0. 1984 UEFA Euro. France – Spain – 2:0. 1988 UEFA Euro. Germany – Spain – 2:0. 1996 UEFA Euro. Spain – England – 0:0 (penalties 2:4). 2002 World Cup. Spain – South Korea – 0:0 (penalties 3:5). 2004 UEFA Euro. Spain – Portugal – 0:1. 2018 World Cup. Spain – Russia – 1:1 (penalties 3:4).
One of the two series will be definitively interrupted.
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