The German team falls from grace before the European Championship at home
Mikhail Rozhdestvensky September 10, 2023, 00:40 Moscow time Audio version: Your browser does not support the audio element.
Revenge against the Japanese for the 2022 World Cup failed. It seems that Flick will soon lose his job.
The failure of the German team in the World Cup in Qatar seemed to many an unfortunate coincidence. According to advanced statistics, Hansi Flick’s team, which failed to reach the playoffs, was one of the best in the entire tournament. The coach was forgiven for his failure and was tasked with preparing the team for the most important thing: Euro 2024 at home. But problems arose here too.
Germany, as the host of the Euro Cup, does not participate in the qualifying rounds, but does actively play friendly matches. The Japanese team arrived in Wolfsburg for the next meeting with the Germans. An excellent choice: the Japanese have a very decent team, they also have motivation: they were the ones that Germany lost in the 2022 World Cup group, which is why they subsequently did not make it to the playoffs.
But it seems that the Germans’ attitude and assessment of their forces did not go well: in the 11th minute, Jun Ito conceded a goal. Eight minutes later they managed to redeem themselves: Florian Wirtz and Leroy Zane planned a perfect attack, and the second touched the ball with his favorite left into the bottom corner.
How long did the draw last? No. Japan’s Ayase Ueda scored the second in the 22nd minute. But it doesn’t matter: Germany had plenty of time to recover. At least that’s what it seemed like at the time.
The Germans spent the rest of the game trying to push the ball into the opposing goal. Admittedly, most of the time it came down to a useless possession, which infuriated even the fans. A very surreal vision: Germany plays at home and controls the ball, and the stands whistle.
The Japanese were completely satisfied with this situation, because the players of the German team left behind them hectares of space, where the guests happily fled. Deadly counterattacks might have buried the intrigue sooner, but Japan still saved the most interesting things for last. Two goals: Takuma Asano in the 90th minute and Ao Tanaka in the 90+2. The score is 1:4.
Ao Tanaka’s delight
Photo: Alex Grimm/Getty Images
The statistics of the match only confirm Germany’s disaster. Who needs 67% possession and a double advantage in assists (754 versus 366) if the team loses 11:14 in shots? It’s scary to even talk about hitting the target, but we’ll say it. The Germans got it right three times. Japanese: 11 times. Yes, 14.
And it can’t even be justified with personnel problems. Germany had almost all the stars, while Japan, for example, was without Takumi Minamino, one of the team’s leaders in recent years.
Do you think the German team’s problems are exaggerated? Take a look at the team’s results this year:
Germany – Peru – 2:0; Germany – Belgium – 2:3; Germany – Ukraine – 3:3; Poland – Germany – 1:0; Germany – Colombia – 0:2.
Well, the loss to Japan is the highest point. Six games, one victory, one draw and four losses. The total score is 8:13.
The sadness of Hans-Dieter Flick
Photo: Alex Grimm/Getty Images
Now I’m really worried about Flick. The coach who surprised Europe three years ago by coaching Bayern and immediately winning the Champions League seemed an ideal candidate for the national team. His appointment was even considered a victory for the German Football Federation. Bringing a young, but already successful and star coach, and even one of their own, a German, from the country’s main club. What could go wrong?
Of course, there have been different examples in history. Stanislav Cherchesov was criticized as much as he could for his results in friendly matches before the World Cup at home. It is difficult to believe that German fans and officials, accustomed to the semi-finals and finals of major competitions, will tolerate booing of the national team on the eve of the most important tournament.
Things are not going well for another top team:
Spalletti ruined his debut with the Italian team. The team runs the risk of missing the Euro Cup
