Leroy Sané more dangerous than ever before, Florian Wirtz like Messi, Jamal Musiala sought after worldwide – the young German offensive artists once again provided highlights on the last Bundesliga weekend. This is also good news for the national coach, who needs a powerful, creative offensive for the home European Championship next summer.
A quick look into the crystal ball: European Championship 2024, final in Berlin, Germany versus England. Extra time, the game is on a knife edge. National coach Julian Nagelsmann brings in Florian Wirtz as a substitute and sends him onto the pitch with the words: “Show the world that you are better than Bellingham!” A few minutes later, Leroy Sané served Wirtz after a solo run, and the Leverkusen player shot the DFB team to the title.
A bit of mental cinema is allowed after a Bundesliga weekend in which the young German offensive stars set a series of highlights. The 20-year-old Wirtz in particular made observers rave; his opening goal was preceded by a solo run in the style of a football field, in which he out-danced Freiburg’s defenders in the penalty area several times and even evoked comparisons with famous magic goals from Lionel Messi.
The opposing team’s coach, Christian Streich, also called Wirtz’s goal “world class” and “indefensible”. Wirtz’s own coach
Sané more dangerous than ever before
Alonso had named the three national players who are inspiring the imagination of German football fans eight months before the home European Championship: Sané has also been shining since the start of the season; in addition to his well-known speed runs, Bayern’s winger has also developed new quality in his finishing. Sané scored twice in the 8-0 goal festival against Darmstadt; he already has eight goals to his name, equaling his personal Bundesliga best after just nine match days. Sané is also likely to break the record from his time at Manchester City, ten goals in one season.
For the national team, Sané recently secured the preliminary decision with his goal in the win against France, a awakening experience for the DFB team in the first game after parting ways with Hansi Flick.
Jamal Musiala, on the other hand, has long been considered the greatest jewel of German football: at the age of 20, Musiala already has 25 international matches to his name and is the youngest player in DFB history to reach this mark. For the “Golden Boy Award”, the election for the best U21 footballer in the world, Musiala probably only has to give way to Jude Bellingham.
Musiala, Sané, Wirtz – “offensive trident” also for the DFB team
National coach Julian Nagelsmann must also have carefully noted the strong form of the young German offensive forces. The national team is actually plagued by an offensive problem, which was recently partly responsible for another early failure at a major tournament. At the World Cup in Qatar, Nagelsmann’s predecessor Flick experimented with several offensive formations: sometimes with Thomas Müller in the center of the attack, sometimes with Niclas Füllkrug, sometimes without a real center forward – the result is known.
Leroy Sané went into the tournament injured, Jamal Musiala was still looking for his role in the DFB team, Florian Wirtz wasn’t there at all after tearing his cruciate ligament in Qatar. If the three young stars maintain their form and fitness until the European Championships in the summer, they could provide the much-needed pace and creativity in the German attack “as an offensive trident”.
Didi Hamann, the busiest oracle on German sports television, predicted after Leverkusen’s Wirtz’s gala performance at the weekend that there could possibly be a castling of young stars next summer: In this form, Wirtz would be a man for FC Bayern, who would even be the world’s favorite could let the coveted Musiala go. According to Hamann on Sky, Wirtz is the better team player in a direct comparison. The national coach shouldn’t care about the possible substitutions – the main thing is that Wirtz and Musiala twirl together at the EURO in the DFB uniform.