GROUP F
Germany 2 - 3 France
(Goretzka 71’, Gnabry 86’) (Mbappe 34’, 52’, Sissoko 90+1)
Tom Quinn
Allianz Arena, Munich
Tuesday 16th June
And breathe.
When the fixtures for Euro 2020 were announced, this game between the two most recent world champions leapt out. Not only as a seismic match in and of itself but also as a reminder of something the tournament had possibly lost. Much was made in 2016 of the decision to expand the tournament from 16 to 24 nations. Many believed that UEFA had sacrificed the quality of the competition for the sake of increased exposure and revenue streams. Fortunately for the organisers sides like Wales and Iceland went on to light up the tournament and legitimate criticism began to sound like elitist carping. No doubt that if Baku proves to be a great night out we will see that same process repeated this time around.
The start in Munich was frenetic. In the build up many foresaw a cagey affair. So often these days, when the bigger sides face each other early in the competition, the game can descend into a kind of phoney war with both sides feeling the other out without ever truly committing to attack. When there is a good chance you may meet each other further down the line you don’t want to give away all your secrets. Fortunately, neither France nor Germany had any such concern here.
Germany had the best of the opening exchanges. Ilkay Gundogan was ferocious off the ball and incisive with it. Joshua Kimmich beside him looked like he will the best midfielder in the world for the next ten years. One moment in particular will live long in the memory when, after twelve minutes, he received the ball on the halfway line, turned and, without looking up at Timo Werner’s run, picked out the Leipzig man with a through ball that perfectly intersected the highly-rated centre back pairing of Clement Lenglet and Rafael Varane. Pressure from the covering Lucas Hernandez prevented Werner from taking full advantage but the work from Kimmich was sublime.
But as it turns out, France, the reigning world champions, also have some excellent footballers. Footage of Kylian Mbappe marvelling at the replay of Kimmich’s moment of genius on the big screen has already become one of the images of the tournament so far but far more heart-warming from a French point of view were the twenty minutes he had afterwards. The German defence was at a complete loss for what to do up against such a talent. Taking up a wider starting position that he is accustomed to with PSG, Mbappe tortured Antonio Rudiger time and again. The Chelsea man has previously looked comfortable at left-back but how his heart must have sank to see Mbappe hugging his touchline in the early stages.
The tone was set in the 16th minute when Mbappe left Rudiger trailing in his wake before crossing for Wissam Ben Yedder to head narrowly wide. The period that followed will not soon be forgotten by fans of either stripe. Ably abetted by Antoine Griezmann and Ben Yedder, Mbappe besieged the German defence from all angles. Niklas Sule and Matthias Ginter were twice caught on camera screaming at their touchline for help. Coach Joachim Low gamely offered instructions but the truth is that there is little any defence can do when the French forward is in the mood.
This was perfectly illustrated in the 34th minute when Mbappe, latching on the Griezmann’s clever flick on, sprinted clear of Ginter and slotted the ball coolly under the outstretched legs of Manuel Neuer into the bottom corner. His statuesque celebration by the corner will no doubt be a familiar sight over the coming weeks.
Having utterly dominated the preceding twenty minutes, France seemed unsure what to do once they had taken the lead. Their slight indecision allowed Germany back into the game and Low’s side carved out several good chances before the half time whistle. Serge Gnabry went close after surging past his Bayern Munich teammate Benjamin Pavard and firing against the base of the French post. Werner was disappointed a few minutes later when he failed to connect with a Gnabry delivery that flashed across the goalmouth.
Whatever confidence Germany gained from their flurry of chances before the break was dashed when Mbappe doubled the lead after 52 minutes. Griezmann dispossessed Toni Kroos on the halfway line and sent Ben Yedder free down the left wing. The Monaco man evaded the challenge of Lenglet to slip the ball across goal for Mbappe to tap in at the far post. It will be the nature of the goal as much as the fact of it that gnaws away at the German players. In truth, Kroos had been ineffectual for much of the first half and the irritation caused by his sloppiness was not well disguised by some of his teammates.
Low seemed to share their annoyance as he withdrew the Real Madrid star ten minutes later. His replacement, Leon Goretska, was the catalyst for what seemed like an unlikely German comeback. Bristling with energy, the Bayern man ruffled the feathers of a French midfield that had been functioning serenely until his arrival. The 25 year old underlined his dominant display by halving the arrears ten minutes after his introduction. Kimmich’s free kick delivery from wide was only half-cleared by a scrambling French defence and Goretzka was able to thump the ball past Hugo Lloris from the edge of the penalty with a powerful right-footed drive. Suddenly German tails were up and France were on the back foot. Nico Schulz, on for Rudiger, forced Mbappe into more defensive responsibilities and allowed Kimmich especially to focus his attentions higher up the field.
The equaliser had already felt inevitable for some time before it arrived courtesy of Gnabry with four minutes of regular time remaining. France had withdrawn Ben Yedder for Presnel Kimbembe with the idea of shoring up a creaking defence. It had the opposite effect, however, as the lack of an attacking threat down the left freed Gnabry of any responsibility to track back and allowed his to play on the shoulder of the last French defender. The reward came when Kimmich and Werner combined to create a lag in the French back line that enabled Gnabry to ghost in between Pavard and Varane to finish past Lloris into the far corner.
Perhaps if there had been delirious and prolonged celebrations we would now be talking about points valiantly shared between rivals who may well meet again in the latter stages. But the sight of Werner grabbing the ball from the back of the net and marching it back to the centre circle seemed to awaken something in the French side. They played the remainder of the match with a blinding intensity that should have been beyond them at that late stage in proceedings. First Pogba clipped the bar from distance. Then Griezmann had a header tipped over the bar by Neuer. The resulting corner made its way to the back post where Varane headed into the chest of Gundogan on the goaline. The ball ricochetted out to Pavard who deftly touched the ball sideways into space where the onrushing Moussa Sissoko could fire towards goal. His shot took a wicked deflection off the heel of Ginter and nestled in the back of the German goal. Cue pandemonium.
The joyful French celebrations were worthy of a final. The truth is that the entire game was worthy of a final. After watching Bulgaria’s routine humiliation at the hands of a ruthless Portugal side earlier in the day, one could be forgiven for wishing that UEFA had never expanded the competition. Welsh and Icelandic exploits aside, how much does the introduction of these lesser sides improve the tournament? In Euro 2012, the last tournament before the expansion, Spain had to play Croatia, France, Portugal and Italy twice before being crowned champions. Such a run is unthinkable in the competition’s current iteration.
But then, having watched these two wonderful sides do battle this evening, perhaps that is the point? Maybe the beauty of football lies in scarcity. From the scarcity of these meetings between giants to the scarcity of actually scoring a goal. In an era in which talk of a European Super League is never far away, perhaps we should be clinging on to a competition that invited low-ranked, unfashionable sides to mingle with the elite. Because while it would be easy to wish for each game to unfold like the one we witnessed this evening, the game would soon be drained of all excitement and meaning. It is the threat of the dreary 0-0 or the 4-0 walkover that make these frenzied displays of genius all the more special.
On this showing you would not bet against France repeating the feat of their 1998-2000 cohort and holding simultaneous World and European titles. For Germany, a valiant defeat leaves them staring nervously up the table. Saturday’s game against Portugal will be crucial.
Germany: Neuer; Klostermann, Sule, Ginter, Rudiger (Schulz 66’); Gundogan, Kimmich, Kroos (Goretzka 61’); Gnabry, Werner, Brandt (4-3-3)
France: Lloris; Pavard, Varane, Lenglet, Hernandez; Tolisso (Pogba 78’), Sissoko, Matuidi (Kante 78’); Griezmann; Mbappe, Ben Yedder (Kimpembe 84’)(4-3-1-2)
Man of the Match: Kylian Mbappe
Attendance: 74,108