Amsterdam (AP) – Hansi Flick and Louis van Gaal happily high-fived each other, and there was also a relaxed atmosphere on the lawn after the football classic among the DFB and Oranje stars. Because the performance encouraged.
Even if Flick’s winning streak has ended, the belief in a successful World Cup remains. After a long dominant appearance in the prestige duel with arch-rival Holland, the 1-1 (1-0) in Amsterdam was a fair result in the end. After Thomas Müller’s 43rd international goal (45+1), David Raum could have increased the lead to 2-0 immediately after the break if he had a big chance.
Flick: “It was a top game for the spectators”
When the Dutch turned up the heat, the German team also needed luck. Shortly after Steven Bergwijn equalized (68′), English referee Craig Pawson happily took back a penalty kick after video evidence. Thilo Kehrer hit Holland attacker Memphis Depay on the foot in the penalty area while trying to clear. The draw was happy in the end.
“It was a top game with high intensity for the spectators,” said Flick and praised his team: “It’s nice how they play football. The way they play is refreshing. She’s brave. We can be satisfied with the 1-1 . The draw is fair.”
Even if Flick was not able to celebrate a win for the first time in his ninth game as national coach, he can look forward to the draw for the World Cup groups on April 1 in Qatar’s capital Doha. Four years after losing the preliminary round in Russia, the DFB team, which has only been sorted into the second pot after Portugal progressed, need not fear a difficult group.
Neuer: “We are on the right track”
“We’re going in the right direction. You could see that we can not only keep up, but also dominate. The feeling in itself is good,” said goal scorer Müller, adding: “Of course we wanted to win. We have to make it 2-0 after half-time .From the 60th minute we lost control until the 85th.It’s a bit annoying but also logical on the way to where we want to be.”
Captain Manuel Neuer also drew a good conclusion. “On the way to Qatar we have to use every test. It was the first big team we played against and it was decent for long stretches. We could have walked away as winners. We had half an hour where we didn’t had the upper hand,” said Neuer: “We have good character, we’re self-confident. I think we’re on the right track.”
At the first big World Cup test in front of around 50,000 spectators, the German team put up with top-class failures for a long time. Four potential regulars were missing from the Bayern block in Joshua Kimmich, Leon Goretzka, Niklas Süle and Serge Gnabry. Flick created new options such as the U21 European champions Nico Schlotterbeck and David Raum in defense or Jamal Musiala. The Bayern talent played cheekily in the Kimmich position in defensive midfield and also prepared Müller’s goal. The 32-year-old drew level with honorary captain Uwe Seeler in the all-time DFB list of goalscorers.
Musiala convinced as Kimmich’s representative
“We want to go back to the top of the world,” Flick had formulated his sense of entitlement in front of the “yardstick” against the eternal rival and called for a courageous appearance. The coach was also offered this by his team. The former Bayern coach was also shown that the German team is prone to making mistakes under pressure.
There was no question of a friendly game. In an intense game, the DFB selection, playing in black, initially acted with great concentration. The Dutch, who are often praised for their offensive qualities, were pinned down again and again in their own penalty area with high pressure. Instead, Oranje lurked – quite unusually – for a counterattack. Flick had already given the signal with his line-up. The offensive Musiala replaced Kimmich in the sixth position and knew how to convince.
The 19-year-old not only initiated the opening goal, but also solved his task – sometimes technically, sometimes physically – very skilfully. The national coach had prescribed more Bayern power for the German game compared to the 2-0 win against Israel. Manuel Neuer was in goal again, while Müller and Leroy Sané returned to the starting XI. After a fine interaction, Müller and Sané also created the first goal chance for the DFB team in the twelfth minute.
43rd international goal for Müller
Despite all efforts, the Oranje defense stars around Virgil van Dijk did not offer much space. Timo Werner’s crossbar would not have counted anyway due to an alleged offside position (21′). Only the last action in the first round brought the DFB leadership. Werner staged Musiala. His sharp cross cleared Tyrell Malacia in the middle, where Müller was once again spot on. With his 43rd international goal, Müller drew level with Seeler and is now eighth in the all-time DFB top scorer list. The German record goalscorer is Miroslav Klose with 71 goals.
And orange? The hosts often seemed at a loss what to look at van Gaal’s face. Dortmund’s Donyell Malen was also unlucky. With a good chance to counterattack, the attacker played a steep pass to Malacia (19′), and he fired another shot wide of the goal (35′). But the German defense also did well for a long time. Antonio Rüdiger ensured stability in his 50th international match and Schlotterbeck also knew how to use his second chance in four days. The Freiburger is one of the winners of the first international match block in the World Cup year.
Luck – penalty not given
Hoffenheim’s David Raum also made an impact, and the full-back was even able to score the first international goal. After a dream pass from Sané, Raum missed a huge chance (47′) in front of the Freiburg Oranje keeper Mark Flekken. But with the lead in the back, the German game was even more pleasing, even more concise. The DFB-Elf did not want to manage the result, but sought the decision.
The lack of consistency in the conclusion should take revenge. After a long ball, Denzel Dumfries returned his header to substitute Bergwijn, who hammered the ball into the goal. After that, the four-time world champion was even lucky that the English referee Pawson took back a penalty kick for the Dutch (73rd). Because Kehrer first hit Depay’s leg when he tried to clear the ball, then hit the ball lightly. “For me it’s a penalty,” judged ARD expert Bastian Schweinsteiger. In another big Dutch chance, Schlotterbeck saved on the line (82nd). It was a tricky phase for the DFB selection, which should have given the national coach some insights.