Germany under Nagelsmann – How good has the team been in Euros 2024 

On June 15, Germany started the Euro 2024 party in Munich with a five-star performance against Scotland, then it brushed aside Hungary in Stuttgart before getting a reality check in Frankfurt from neighbours Switzerland.

Julian Naglesmann’s side topped Group A with seven points and eight goals to move to the knockouts. However, despite the two convincing performances, it looked vulnerable in its final game.

A stopped-time equaliser from substitute Niclas Fullkrug saved  Die Mannschaft from a humiliating first defeat against the Swiss since the 1938 World Cup in France. 

Despite a nervy end to the group stage, the host nation looked rejuvenated in the home Euros after underwhelming outings in the last four major tournaments. 

Following a string of bad results, in September 2023, the German Football Association (DFB) fired Hansi Flick and appointed 36-year-old Nagelsmann as the new head coach.

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The former Bayern Munich coach had a tough start with losses to lower-ranked oppositions Turkiye and Austria. But, since the turn of the year, Germany has been near flawless. It has won five of the seven games played in 2024 and scored 14 goals while only conceding three.

Germany of 2024 looks more assured, fluid and seems to have got its killer instinct back, which made it a perennial favourite for the better part of the last six decades.

So, what has Nagelsmann done to take Germany from having only eight wins in 24 matches between Euro 2021 and the end of 2023 to being one of the favourites to win Euro 2024?

A clarity of thought 

On the surface, this German team lines up in the same 4-2-3-1 formation, which previously helped it win the 2014 World Cup and reach the semifinal of Euro 2016. 

In Euro 2024, Germany has finally found a stable base to operate in a relatively simple system where its technically gifted players can flourish. 

Nagelsmann has brought clarity of thought to the team and trusted the personnel at his disposal. He has fielded largely unchanged starting XIs in 2024 and has stuck with it. 

The return of Toni Kroos from international retirement has borne fruit as the 34-year-old adds that extra bit of quality in transitions. His deep-lying playmaking abilities have been central to Germany’s progression as a team and enabled teammates to focus on their roles.  

In possession, Germany adopts a 3-1-5-1 formation with Kroos dropping deep and occupying the space of the third centre-back. In front of the backline is Robert Andrich, the midfield enforcer acting as a shield.

The return of Toni Kroos from international retirement has enabled Germany to have an extra bit of quality in transition.
| Photo Credit:
GETTY IMAGES

In front of him are effectively three No. 10 in the form of Ilkay Gundogan – Jamal Musiala and Florian Wirtz – the latter two are the designated wide attackers who like to operate in the half spaces and leave room for the full-backs to join the attack.

Up front is Kavi Havertz, a technically gifted forward with a good blend of physicality and intelligence. Havertz’s task is to drag opposition defenders out of position for other attackers to exploit. 

But the most important part of Germany’s attacking play comes from its full-back pairing of Joshua Kimmich with Maximilian Mittelstadt. Both complement each other in their skillset, they are willing runners, good crossers of the ball and decent in one-on-one situations.

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This comes after 18 full-back pairings tried by Flick in the last two years. This lack of clarity in player selection extended to other positions, preventing Germany from fielding the best team. 

Since its group stage departure from the 2018 World Cup in Russia, the national team has experimented with over 60 players while only selecting the same XI seven times, which has contributed to the team’s four-year absence from the top ten FIFA ranking.

Cohesive unity over individual brilliance 

At the core of Nagelsmann’s Germany are the jewels of its immense talent pool. Over the previous year, the German team has transformed from a chaotic group to a unified one.

It no longer solely depends on individual brilliance in every match. The team game of Germany has caught the eyes of every football fan around the globe, especially in its first two matches. 

In a world where the merit of international football tournaments is getting devalued in the rapid rise of club competitions, Nagelsmann has managed to give his team an on-field identity.

Under Nagelsmann’s guidance, Germany wants to create space between the lines or suck the opposition press in and exploit space on the other side of the pitch with moves and countermoves. 

There is a lovely detail on Germany’s anthem jackets that epitomises the unity of the players representing their fatherland. On one right side of the chest, they have a map of Germany with the player’s initials pinned on where they were born.

Below the Adidas logo, there is a map of Germany with the player’s initials pinned on where they were born.
| Photo Credit:
AP

The driving forces  

Kroos has already notched up the most successful passes in the tournament (324), which is also the record during the group stages at a European Championship tournament. The midfield maestro is followed by Germany’s centre-back pair of Antonio Rudiger (254) and Jonathan Tah (222).

Musiala is the joint-highest scorer in the Euro 2024, while the newly-crowned Bundesliga player of the season Wirtz is continuing his club form and Kroos is doing what Kross usually does in his last dance. However, the most important player in the team is Bayer Leverkusen’s Andrich. 

The 29-year-old midfielder is selflessly doing the dirty work and helping his teammates with the platform to express themselves. On paper, he is part of a midfield pivot alongside Kroos just behind Gundogan. However, in possession, he plays between his two midfield partners; without the ball, he becomes a defender. 

While Havertz has started all three group games up front and has led the line well, it is Borussia Dortmund’s Fullkrug, who has showcased his mettle in crunch moments in front of the goal.

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Since the World Cup 2022, Fullkrug has become the embodiment of the national side, an old-fashioned target man. With his goal against Switzerland, the 31-year-old now has scored more goals as a substitute at major international tournaments than any other European player (4). He’s also Germany’s record goal-scorer off the bench and its joint-highest-scorer in Euro 2024.  

Caution in the wind

However, in between all of the goals and plaudits, the Switzerland match showed that Germany can be put under strain by intense pressing. While the squad is skilled at breaking low blocks, it appears vulnerable when its playmakers are put under duress.

Fullkrug, an old-fashioned target man, is Germany’s record goal-scorer off the bench.  
| Photo Credit:
REUTERS

While the perceived weakness in counter-attacks has been rectified, the squad must devise a backup plan before the knockout match. 

With many players on yellow cards and first-choice centre-back Tah suspended, Nagelsmann will need to rely more on his bench as the campaign nears its business end.

Dortmund’s Nico Schlotterbeck will most likely team up with Rudiger, while Fullkrug will put pressure on Havertz to get a starting berth. German fans will also be hoping that Leroy Sane, who has appeared off-colour in the group stage, can regain his rhythm in the crucial matches.

Parallels have been drawn between Germany’s current campaign and its 2006 World Cup run on home soil. Die Mannschaft was coming off a devastating group stage exit from Euro 2004. Two years later, it defied all expectations by finishing third under Jurgen Klinsmann.  

In the run-up to Euro 2024, there was a similar sense of anticipation among German fans, and the first few performances drastically changed their perception of the team from eight months ago.

Germany, led by the youngest coach in European Championships history, has reignited the nation’s dreams.