Jun 20, 2023 at 11:03 PMUpdate: 41 minutes ago
A year before the European Championship in their own country, things are anything but good for Germany. After mistakes against Poland and Ukraine, Colombia lost 0-2 in front of their own audience on Tuesday.
Although it was an exhibition game, the pressure against Colombia was quite high for the team of national coach Hansi Flick. After the loss against Poland (1-0) and the draw against Ukraine (3-3), Germany was determined to win in Gelsenkirchen.
That conviction was not visible in the German team, so that it was still 0-0 after a not very uplifting first half. The most striking thing in the first 45 minutes was the storming of the field by two people who wanted to draw attention to the climate crisis.
After the break, things went completely wrong for Germany. Luís Díaz opened the score for Colombia with a nice header in the 54th minute, after which Cuadrado made the decision ten minutes before the end. The winger converted a penalty kick, which was awarded after a handball from Joshua Kimmich.
Due to the loss, criticism in Germany of national coach Flick is increasing. The former coach of Bayern Munich was already under fire after the disappointing World Cup, where Germany was already eliminated in the group stage. After a crisis consultation, Flick was allowed to stay on despite the early elimination.
Germany will not play qualifying matches this year because, as the organizing country, it is already certain of participation in next year’s European Championship. The three-time European champion has two exhibition games scheduled in September: at home against Japan and France. Then Germany will have to win to avoid a new crisis.
One of two climate activists on the field at Germany-Colombia. Photo: Getty Images
2023-06-20 21:03:03
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