Surprisingly, the German hockey men only started the home European Championship with a draw against Wales – despite a two-goal lead.
The team of national coach Andre Henning did not get more than 3: 3 (1: 0) against outsiders Wales in Mönchengladbach. Malte Hellwig (25th minute) gave Germany the lead, Lukas Windfeder (35th) and Tom Grambusch (45th/both from a penalty corner) followed suit in the second half. Jack Pritchard (42nd/58th) and Gareth Furlong (49th/penalty corner) scored for the courageous world number 15, who was rewarded late for a strong performance.
Germany started the game in a dominant manner, but were unable to take advantage of the first good chances in the person of top striker Niklas Wellen and penalty corner specialist Gonzalo Peillat. The game then flattened out a bit before Hellwig from Mülheim shot the selection of the German Hockey Association (DHB) with his seventh international goal for a deserved break lead.
Already under pressure against the Netherlands
In the second half, however, the sleepy German defense kept allowing chances, which the Brits coldly exploited. Windfeder and Grambusch, who was born in Gladbach, actually put Germany on the road to victory, but Wales hit back late.
In the classic against the Netherlands on Monday (6 p.m.), the DHB team is already under pressure. The defending champion is one of the top favorites of the tournament, along with Germany, which surprisingly won the World Cup in January, and Olympic champion Belgium.
The German women, who are also fighting for the title in Mönchengladbach, will meet England in the second group game on Sunday (5.30 p.m.) after their convincing 4-0 opening win against Scotland.