Two months after ending their unfinished journey at EURO 2024 at home, Julian Nagelsmann's Germany team returned strongly with a resounding 5-0 home win over Hungary in the opening day of the UEFA Nations League 2024-2025.
At Dusseldorf, tickets to Merkur Spiel-Arena have been sold out. The fans of "The tank" still show enthusiasm for the team even though their performance is currently being doubted. Niclas Fullkrug, Jamal Musiala, Florian Wirtz, Kai Havertz and Aleksandar Pavlovic have responded to that enthusiasm with scoring.
The German national team is now without Ilkay Gundogan, Manuel Neuer and Toni Kroos. Disappointment is felt, but every game has to stop, now is the time for the mission to be handed over to the new generation.
At EURO 2024, Toni Kroos has a very good index, a pillar for the whole team to rely on. However, after the former Real Madrid midfielder announced his retirement, Nagelsmann has no choice but to find someone who can replace Kroos' role in midfield. Fortunately, new projects have succeeded against Hungary, opening up a beautiful signal about a successful dynasty.
Against Hungary, Nagelsmann chose Pascal Gross to pair with Robert Andrich in central midfield. Gross accepted to drop the most, playing the role of the first receiver from the central defender pair. Unlike Kroos, who did not slowly progress the ball forward or pass it to his teammates, the former Brighton midfielder (now playing for Dortmund) focused on coordinating with Andrich.
With the pair in the midfield playing area in harmony, the German team has a clear rhythm. They became more decisive in the disputes thanks to the solidity of the Gross - Andrich pair. Meanwhile, up front, Kai Havertz is no longer a centre-forward. He was pushed down to play in the position left by Gundogan.
Havertz was once considered a very difficult player to use despite possessing a diverse skill set. It took the German star many years, especially after leaving Chelsea, to be decoded by Mikel Arteta and Julian Nagelsmann. Nagelsmann placed Havertz between midfield and forward and this arrangement was successful.
The responsibility of scoring and playing wide outside the box has helped Havertz feel free to create. Previously, if he played in this position, he had to pass more to get the right to finish. From now on, the Arsenal star may be able to play regularly, no longer having to worry about choosing a position.
The winger pair Florian Wirtz - Jamal Musiala are still impressive, as they were at EURO 2024. This young energy of the "Tankers" not only helps them attack like a storm, Wirtz and Musiala themselves are also the first to participate in the intercept, ensuring that the opponent cannot easily deploy the ball forward.
A German team full of youth has debuted and initially left many positive impressions. This will be the generation of Die Mannschaft in the journey to conquer the 2026 World Cup gold cup.
