News
JUE 16.06.2016
Toni Kroos and Shkodran Mustafi helped Germany to an opening day 1-0 win over Ukraine in a Euro 2016 tournament the country is keen to win, but which has yet to fire the imagination of fans back home. The Real Madrid midfielder and Valencia CF defender won Man-of-the-Match and scored the game’s only goal respectively last weekend, and are impressing German fans in different ways.
King Kroos
“Toni Kroos is becoming the king on the pitch, and in the hearts of the supporters,” Joerg Althoff, a journalist for German newspaper Bild, told LaLiga. “He’s put in perfect performances on the pitch, he’s a Champions League winner with Real Madrid, and a likeable guy. No arrogance at all. Mustafi is admired for where he has come from. He was almost unknown in Germany until coach Joachim Loew picked him mainly as a substitute in 2014. Now, he is a frequent member of the team, and even a goalscorer.” FC Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen is the third LaLiga player in the Germany squad but is understudy to first-choice Manuel Neuer. “Ter Stegen’s situation is a little more difficult. He doesn’t play many games at Barcelona,” Althoff said.
Waiting for lift off
Loew’s side take on fellow Group D leaders Poland on Thursday, after the country which boasts LaLiga’s Grzegorz Krychowiak (Sevilla FC) beat N.Ireland 1-0 in their opener, with most Germans confident of smooth progress to the knockout stages. But the excitement has yet to take off among fans of Die Mannschaft. “Euro fever has not gripped Germany yet,” Althoff said. “It’s nothing when compared to the World Cup in 2006 (in Germany), of course. But it isn’t similar to 2008, 2010, 2012 or 2014 either. There are fewer cars with flags etc. The reasons? Our opening game wasn’t against a big name, and the general mood around the Euros is subdued because of off-the-pitch concerns. But public viewings were well attended during the first Germany game.”
Double dreams
Germany enter Euro 2016 as world champions, having triumphed in the FIFA World Cup in Brazil in 2014, hoping to emulate France and Spain’s recent back-to-back successes. France won the 1998 World Cup on home turf and followed that up with victory at Euro 2000, while Spain matched them by winning the World Cup in South Africa in 2010 and then Euro 2012 two years later. “German fans expect the world champion to win the European Championship,” Althoff said. “The semi-finals will not be enough. Losing the final against a strong opponent could be accepted. We see our main rivals as being Spain, France, England (because of our age-old rivalry) and of course, Italy. Germany have never beaten Italy at a major tournament.”
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