The Spaniards failed to materialize their dominance in the game. Germany came back into the game well at the end of the game.
In great confidence after their great victory against Costa Rica (7-0), the Spaniards started the match very well. La Roja did not let go of the ball in this first period.
Spain monopolized the ball
First opportunity for Luis Enrique’s men from the 7the minute of play. Dani Olmo finds the bar after a very big shot from the right.
The Germans respond immediately. Serge Gnabry, the Bayern Munich striker, is served by his club teammate Leon Goretzka in the box. The 27-year-old eventually gets the ball taken by Unai Simón.
As the match progressed, the Spanish dominance came out more and more. The Germans are content to react against without really bringing the danger to the opposing camp.
We will have to wait for the 33e minute of play to review a great opportunity from La Roja. Very well served by Dani Olmo, Ferran Torres misses the target.
In lack of success, the Spanish team almost got punished with a free kick in the 40e minute of play. Antonio Rüdiger puts the ball into the net with a header. The match referee disallows the goal. The Real Madrid centre-back was offside in action.
This is how the first round ended. The Mannschaft came very close to opening the scoring while the domination was Spanish for the first 45 minutes.
Upon returning from the locker room, the German selection revealed another face. More enterprising in the game, Thomas Müller’s teammates chained several chances.
Hansi Flick has clearly asked his players to play much higher up the pitch. The first big opportunity is signed Joshua Kimmich. After recovering the ball at the entrance to the penalty area, the Bavarian midfielder stumbles on the Spanish goalkeeper Simon.
While the German selection seemed to take the advantage in the game, it was La Roja who opened the scoring in the 62e minute of play. Served by Jordi Alba with a millimeter pass, Alvaro Morata left Manuel Neuer no chance.
Fullkrug, the German savior
Real Madrid striker Marco Asensio narrowly misses his team’s second goal. He took over a center line from Dani Olmo in the 65the minute of play but his shot is off target.
The Spaniards feel that it is time to push the Germans. They chain the offensives. Alvaro Morata creates a great opportunity in the 67e minute of play but pushes his ball too far and has it stolen by the opposing goalkeeper.
The German technical staff decided to make three changes in order to relaunch the machine. Hansi Flick’s winning coaching. The Mannschaft equalize seven minutes from the end of regulation time.
Niclas Füllkrug, returned in place of Thomas Muller, resets the counters to zero. Launched deep, the 29-year-old striker lands an unstoppable strike and revives his own.
The end of the match is rather animated but the two teams part with a scoreless draw. It will therefore be necessary to wait for the third and last day of the group stage to know the two teams which will qualify for the round of 16 of the competition.