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Euro 2020: German comeback did not surprise coach Joachim Loew

EURO 2020: GROUP F
GERMANY HUNGARY
2 2
(Kai Havertz 66,
Leon Goretzka 84)
(Adam Szalai 11, Andras Schafer 68)

Germany coach Joachim Loew was confident his side would power their way back into the game after twice going behind to unfancied opponents Hungary in a dramatic European Championship group decider in Munich on Thursday morning (June 24, Singapore time).

Loew said he watched with growing confidence as Germany threw everything forward in the closing stages and equalised six minutes from time through Leon Goretzka to salvage a 2-2 draw. That gave them second place in Group F and set up a round-of-16 match against England at Wembley next Tuesday (June 29).

Adam Szalai’s diving header from a brilliant cross from deep by Roland Sallai had put Hungary in front early and they looked so determined to hang on to that advantage.

Even when Germany levelled through Kai Havertz in the 66th minute, Hungarian heads didn’t drop and within two minutes they had regained the lead through Andras Schafer.

But Goretzka's equaliser helped Germany claim the runners-up spot.

"With 10 minutes left, we decided to throw on all our attacking players. I really liked the power that we showed, and that’s why I had the feeling that we could score a goal.

 

 

 

“At half-time, I told the players we need to be faster in our combination play but without losing our nerve, and not trying to attack without structure. I sensed the players wanted to turn it around with all that they could throw at it, to make it to the next round.”

Hungary were always going to be a difficult opponent even if they were the outsiders in a tough group, the German coach added.


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“We expected they would make it desperate for us with their defensive block, with their energy in the duels and closing down the spaces. Falling behind twice made it very difficult to turn the match around. We didn’t open up enough space in their defence so in the end, it was a strong mentality and good spirit that saw us through,” he said.

“We didn’t go crazy and we didn’t give up, and the character and personality that the team displayed was perfect.”

England will be a different prospect in the knockout stage, he added.

“England will be at home, in front of their fans and they will want to attack. There won’t be any parking the bus as there was tonight. One thing we need to take care of is to cut down on the number of mistakes we made. We gave the ball away too much, and that cannot happen in the next game.”

Loew, who steps down as Germany coach after the tournament, was minutes away from elimination and an inglorious end to an illustrious career that includes winning the 2014 World Cup.

“I wasn’t thinking about that,” he told the post-match news conference. “There were a lot of other things to take care of first.”

Hungary coach Marco Rossi said that despite exiting the European Championship after the group stage, his team could hold their heads up high for playing a remarkable three games against some of the top teams in the world.

Hungary drew 1-1 with world champions France and 2-2 with Germany, their only loss a 3-0 defeat by Portugal in a very tough group.

“I would challenge anyone to say they knew that coming up against these teams we would get any points,” Rossi told a news conference. “But we drew against France and Germany. This will go down in recent Hungarian football history.

“The guys have done something that people will recall in years to come and they will be proud of them.” – REUTERS

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