Following a brilliant start to the 2024 home European Championship, former Bayern Munich manager and current Germany boss Julian Nagelsmann was delighted with the win and, as captured by @iMiaSanMia here and here, made sure to praise nearly the entire front line for their performance today.
“I would definitely have taken this result before the game. The first 20 minutes were very impressive. The first goals were very good. I think the Scots were impressed too. We presented ourselves very well. We then got a deserved penalty-I think the red card was deserved as well- and didn’t allow them any chances, but unfortunately there was that set piece [that led to Scotland’s goal]. But we were angry, which shows the hunger that we have.”
And that was perhaps the best part of the performance: Not the beautiful football, not the goals, but the fact that every player showed the German ruthlessness and hunger throughout the entire 90 minutes, even when complacency may have set in for other players. Nagelsmann singled out three of the top performers of the match:
“I am also very pleased with İlkay [Gündoğan]’s performance, that was very good, he was always available for a pass. It’s very valuable that many players performed well early on. Jamal [Musiala] scored a really nice goal, as did [Florian] Wirtz. Ilkay also deserved a goal. It is great that not just one person is getting the flowers today. It was a good step, but it is also just the first. We have to keep going. In general, we needed that right now. Hungary will be different on Wednesday.”
Looking for more thoughts and analysis on Germany’s massive EURO 2024-opening win over Scotland? Good, because the Bavarian Podcast Works — Postgame Show has you covered! We’ve got takes on Julian Nagelsmann’s lineup, the brilliance of Toni Kroos, Germany’s relentless attack, and why Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala are probably winning over a lot of new fans. You can get the podcast on Spotify or below: