“The first half was really great,” says Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann.
Germany secured a spot in the Nations League quarter-finals on Monday after midfielder Jamie Leweling had a perfect international debut, scoring the winning goal in a tough 1-0 home victory against the Netherlands in Group A3.
The 23-year-old Leweling, one of two players making their debut for Germany, had a goal in the second minute, but it was ruled offside. However, he scored in the 64th minute, shooting into the top corner after the Dutch team didn’t clear a corner properly.
Germany is at the top with 10 points from four matches and has secured a spot in the quarter-finals, while the Dutch are five points behind in second place, ahead of Hungary due to goal difference. Bosnia is at the bottom with one point after losing 2-0 to Hungary.
“The first half was really good,” said Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann. “After the break, they changed things, and we didn’t defend as well.
“But we truly deserved the win. Now, we want to win the remaining matches. We want to keep getting good results.”
Germany put pressure on the visitors from the start. Besides Leweling’s goal, they had more chances to score through Tim Kleindienst and Maximilian Mittelstaedt while Ronald Koeman’s team struggled to get into the game.
The hosts continued to press after halftime and came close again with a shot from Serge Gnabry in the 54th minute before Leweling scored the winner.
The Dutch team was quiet for most of the match but nearly scored with their first chance when Xavi Simons’ shot hit the bar in the 77th minute. Just moments later, Mittelstaedt’s shot deflected narrowly wide of the post.
“I am not happy with our performance,” said Netherlands coach Ronald Koeman. “The Germans were better, faster, and stronger. They created more chances.
“We lost too many balls in midfield. We fell back too much, which wasn’t the plan. We wanted to put pressure on the right side, but that didn’t happen,” he added.
Like Leweling, another newcomer for Germany, 34-year-old keeper Oliver Baumann, made a difference by keeping their lead in the 90th minute, making a great save by punching a powerful shot from Doneyll Malen wide.
