The enthusiastic fans didn’t want to leave the stadium at all, but celebrated the magic duo Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala as well as the entire national football team extensively and exuberantly on their lap of honour. This new beginning after the home European Championships has the national coach, the players and the spectators wanting more.
The top match in the Nations League will take place on Tuesday (8.45 p.m./RTL), following the DFB selection’s 5-0 win against Hungary and the Netherlands’ equally high-scoring 5-2 win against Bosnia-Herzegovina. “I’m looking forward to it. The Dutch also scored five goals. Holland has a very, very good team and a lot of potential when it comes to individual players. I’m excited,” said Nagelsmann in Düsseldorf.
The biggest win in the 15th international match under Nagelsmann’s leadership gave the 37-year-old several important – and above all positive – insights as he heads towards the 2026 World Cup. At the next major tournament in the USA, Canada and Mexico, Nagelsmann wants to achieve more than the quarter-finals at the home European Championship. Ideally, it should be the World Cup trophy.
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The national team follows Nagelsmann
The national coach wanted to see the same enthusiasm from his players as at the home tournament. His wish was granted. Nagelsmann chose words like “fun”, “hard work” and “the desire to win”. And “the connection with the fans” was also immediately re-established. The “chemistry in this group” is right, he said several times. Winning should become a matter of course. Then in two years’ time they will be among the favorites for the World Cup, says Nagelsmann.
Without Kroos, Neuer, Gündogan, Müller? It works
How much does the loss of long-standing DFB greats Toni Kroos, Manuel Neuer, Ilkay Gündogan and Thomas Müller weigh? That was the big question before kick-off. After the goal gala, the over-30s players who retired after the European Championship were no longer the topic of conversation. Pascal Groß replaced Kroos in the center of the game with dynamism, finesse and an enormous radius of action, paving the way to victory. Nagelsmann praised the new Dortmund player for a top performance.
Kroos doesn’t want to copy Groß, but rather lead the team as his own original. “I believe in my strengths, even if I don’t talk big,” said the 33-year-old after his ninth international match. It was by far his best and most formative.
The magic of “Wusiala”
In the opening match of the European Championship on June 14th in Munich, it was Florian Wirtz (21) and Jamal Musiala (21) who initiated the 5:1 goal fest against Scotland with their goals. And now, at the brilliant start to the Nations League, it was again the magic duo “Wusiala” who carried the fans away. Again both scored. Again the 21-year-olds combined to their heart’s content on the pitch. “It’s always fun to play around with Flo,” said Musiala. “The hard work they have is the decisive factor,” said Nagelsmann about the “nice, normal guys.”
And again: Completely detached fans
It wasn’t that long ago that there was talk in Germany of a deep alienation between fans and their national team. And now? The jingle “totally detached” is used to cheer after goals and to celebrate together in the stadium after the games. The home European Championship was of course an exceptional situation. But with performances like the one against the European Championship group opponents Hungary, the euphoria can also be transferred to everyday international matches. “The atmosphere was amazing. I have the feeling that the national anthem is being sung a little louder again. I always sing loudly,” said goalscorer Niclas Füllkrug.
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