Germany captain Ilkay Gundogan expects Scotland to provide a tricky test for his side in the opening match of Euro 2024.
The Barcelona midfielder is seeking to end a decade of torment for Die Mannschaft by guiding the three-time European Champions to the latter stages of the tournament on home soil.
The 33-year-old moved to the Nou Camp after seven years at Man City last season and will come face to face with a number of familiar faces, not least Man United rival Scott McTominay and Liverpool’s Andy Robertson, the Scotland captain.
“I expect a difficult game,” he told a pre-match press conference. “I know a lot of players from the Premier League. They are very experienced.
“I do think they can be tricky but they are also good in terms of how they play. We must not underestimate them.
“I have respect for them, but if we play to our potential, I think we have a good chance of winning the game tomorrow.”
Wichtig, am Ende den Sieg geholt zu haben – noch 7 Tage! 🇩🇪🏟️💪🏼 // Important to get this win in the end – 7 days left! 🇩🇪🏟️💪🏼 #Euro2024pic.twitter.com/N0fHJ4rdxd
Gundogan has won 77 caps over a 13-year international career but missed Germany’s 2014 World Cup triumph in Germany due to a back injury.
He revealed he went to support the national team in the fan festivals aged 15 when Germany hosted their last major tournament – the 2006 World Cup, in which they finished third under Jurgen Klinsmann.
“It’s a huge privilege not only to lead the team onto the pitch as captain, but also to play with my teammates in my country. You don’t get such a chance very often,” he said.
“I was at the fan festivals as a youngster in 2006. To now be part of this team and to represent the German people is an honour. We want to make them proud.”
Gundogan hailed the impact of head coach Julian Nagelsmann who took over the role in September after Gundogan’s new club boss Hansi Flick became the first German coach ever to be fired.
Having not won a knockout game since Euro 2016, German fans have been put through the mill over recent years, but Gundogan said: “It helped us that the coach assigned clear roles.
“After the negative experiences of the past tournaments, everyone knows what is at stake and what they have to do.
“That gives us a certain sense of security. The results in the practice matches speak for the good morale and atmosphere in the team.”
Germany head coach Julian Nagelsmann admits his side will be nervous as they prepare to face Scotland in the Euro 2024 opener.
The hosts will seek to end an eight-year wait for a knockout win in a major tournament on home soil this month but know Scotland will not make it easy for them in the Group A opener in Munich on Friday night (8pm BST kick-off).
Speaking at the pre-match press conference Nagelsmann – who only took charge of the three-time European Champions nine months ago after Hansi Flick was sacked – said the camp were looking forward to tomorrow and ‘I think we’re ready’
“We’ve used the days well to train well. The boys seem in good form,” he added. “We are a bit nervous but that’s an important point. We have to have a certain nervousness.”
He identified Steve Clarke’s side’s danger from set pieces and from out wide and said the Scots were under no pressure against Germany.
“Scotland are a very good team that have four or five important players in their group,” he said.
“They put in lots of crosses. They have made big progress in the way they play football. Their mentality is certainly extraordinary.
“We are under more pressure than the Scots. We want to win the opening game. I also demand that we believe in ourselves. We have good players and have shown mentality in recent games. We have everything we need and want to bring it onto the pitch.”
He urged the fans at his former stomping ground the Allianz Arena to get behind Die Mannschaft, adding: “I want us to do everything we can to have a great tournament. I want the country to push us forward as Germany. Please all be loud in the stadium tomorrow. I’m confident we’ll play a good game.”
Nagelsmann on tomorrow’s game: “Scotland are a very good team that have four or five important players in their group. They put in lots of crosses. They have made big progress in the way they play football. Their mentality is certainly extraordinary. We are under more pressure… pic.twitter.com/fME4JLPkKG
Nagelsmann also lifted the lid on the process of getting Toni Kroos to end his international retirement after two years to finish his playing career with Germany this summer.
“Toni is important for us, you can give him the ball at any time. He is an important player for all of us, but especially for the young players,” he said.
“It took me a while to persuade him. He said that he would only be back if he felt that we could win something with the team. And then he said ‘Yes, let’s do it.’”
Kroos retired after Germany’s dismal Euro 2020 campaign ended in the Round of 16 against England, while they went on to go out in the group at the Qatar 2022 World Cup.
“I don’t want to talk about the past,” said Nagelsmann. “It’s about the present. We want to be more successful than we were last time.
“It’s important to start well tomorrow. There’s no point in talking about past tournaments.”
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Captain Andy Robertson says Scotland are seeking to make history by qualifying for the knockout stages and spoil Germany’s Euro 2024 opening party.
The 30-year-old Liverpool left-back will lead his side out in Munich on Friday night (8pm kick-off BST) for the opening game of Group A, which also includes Hungary and Switzerland.
“We’ve waited a long time or this game, it feels as if it’s been years and years coming,” he told a pre-match press conference.” We know how much of a challenge it’s going to be, one more sleep and we’ll be ready come kick-off.
“I don’t really think about my emotions too much. I feel the same as the rest of the boys. I feel immensely proud and very excited as well.”
— Scotland National Team (@ScotlandNT) June 13, 2024
Robertson is wary of the threat of the host nation – three time winners and four-time World Cup winners – but said his side are capable of shocking the world.
“It’s important we show up to our maximum and if we do that we can create a bit of history,” he said.
“Tomorrow night we are playing a team full of quality, in front of their home fans, but it’s a challenge we’re excited for.
“We expect a lot from ourselves and hopefully we can do that on the pitch.”
With up to 1000,000 Scots expected in Germany for the opening week, Robertson added: “We know there’s a lot of fans over here and we hope to make them proud. We know not all of them can get in the stadium, we wish they could, it would help us out.
“We can’t do it without the support and we hope they enjoy themselves. Hopefully we can give them something to shout about and they can stay in Germany a little bit longer.”
Scotland have qualified for successive European Championships but have still never reached the knockouts at a major tournament, something which Robertson wants to put right.
He said: “The first Euros was massive for us, now we want to compete. Last time we felt in the England game (a 0-0 draw at Wembley in Group D) we did pretty well but let ourselves down in the others.
“We don’t want to have any regrets this time. What’s the worst that can happen? We go into a long list of teams that haven’t made it out the group or we put ourselves in a good position to be a team to make history.
“We’re excited by the challenge, we’re excited about what’s ahead and if we perform the way I know we can perform then I’m confident we can make history.”
Though they qualified in some style, Scotland have won only once in their last nine games, a 2-0 slog against Gibraltar in their penultimate warm-up game last week.
Robertson admitted: “When you look at results up and down the board, I think every team will need to step up.
“You can’t recreate competitive football. After we qualified we probably took a little bit of a drop which shouldn’t happen but it did.
“But now we’re ready, you get no bigger stage than this. Tomorrow night all eyes will be on us against Germany and it’s time to show what we can do.
“Of course we need to step it up but all nations are in the exact same boat.”
— Scotland National Team (@ScotlandNT) June 13, 2024
Robertson admitted losing main forward Lyndon Dykes to injury on the eve of the tournament had dealt the squad a blow but revealed the QPR frontman will remain with the group in Germany, adding: “It’s great to have him here. The day he got his injury was difficult for the whole squad.
“But now that he’s here as a fan, as a staff member probably, it’s great. He’s very important off the pitch as well because not many could have done that with the emotions he’s gone through in the last few weeks.
“We’d love him to be on the pitch but unfortunately that wasn’t possible. He’ll be a big factor for us and hopefully he can stay with us the whole time.”
Robertson revealed he has also shrugged off a nagging injury sustained on Liverpool duty, saying he feels: “Physically good, mentally good, looking forward to what’s ahead. I had an ankle injury from March and I’ve been nursing it a little bit from then on.
“It’s all good now, we were pretty relaxed about the whole situation but I’m all good to go. Mentally, physically we’re all ready and come kick-off we’ll be 100%.”
Conor Gallagher admitted he was sad to see Mauricio Pochettino leave Chelsea but is putting his own future to focus on England’s Euro 2024 campaign.
Gallagher became a key man at Stamford Bridge last season, making 50 appearances with the majority as captain under Pochettino.
The Argentine has left the Blues after a sixth-place finish and been replaced by former Leicester manager Enzo Maresca.
And after sealing his Euros place thanks to his consistent form with Pochettino at the helm, the midfielder admitted his departure was tough to take.
“Of course he has done so much for me so I was sad,” Gallagher said on Pochettino’s exit.
“Sad for him and coaching staff but really excited about the new manager coming in and myself and everyone at Chelsea is really excited to work with him.
“I think I have come a long way this season, I give a lot of credit to Pochettino and what he has done for me, gave me responsibility and trust at Chelsea.
“That puts me in a better position to be a bigger part of the squad at this tournament and I’ll do as much as I can to help England in the tournament.
“He just showed his belief and trust in me which is all a player wants to be honest. If a manager shows you a bit of love, it makes you play better.”
“I’ve come a long way, I give a lot of credit to Pochettino” 👏
Conor Gallagher thanks former Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino for giving him extra responsibility as captain last season 🔵 pic.twitter.com/YgzgP82SlT
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) June 13, 2024
Future talk can wait
One of the reasons for Pochettino’s mutual departure was reportedly due to the potential sale of Gallagher, who could be offloaded Chelsea chiefs due to profit and sustainability reasons.
He has been strongly linked with a move to the likes of Aston Villa, West Ham and Tottenham.
But the 24-year-old says he will put talks about his future to one side as he hopes to help England secure glory in Germany.
“I’m a Chelsea player right now and like I said I am just focused on England and the tournament,” Gallagher added.
“I have just been focusing on England, this is the most important thing right now for me, for the country and I just want to start the tournament now.
“It is not difficult, I’m in a very privileged position to play for England and be at a tournament like this and I couldn’t be happier with the situation.”
Three time European Champions Germany will kick-off Euro 2024 on home soil on Friday when they take on Scotland in the Group A curtain-raiser.
Since lifting their fourth World Cup in Brazil in 2014, Die Mannschaft have endured 10 years of hurt, something which has amused much of the globe nearly as much as it has irked Germany fans.
Can they roll back the years and return to their former glories and add the 2024 title to the 1972, 1980 and 1996 crowns?
Let’s have a look at how the hosts are shaping up…
Group A
This is perhaps the easiest group to predict according to most bookies and fans. Germany, three-time winners, three-time runners-up, who have qualified for the finals more than any other side, will face neighbours Switzerland, Hungary and Scotland.
Germany will take on Scotland in the first game of the tournament in Munich on June 14 but it’s likely to be their clash with Hungary in Stuttgart five days later, and potentially the final-day clash with Switzerland in Frankfurt on June 23 which will determine the order in which they finish in Group A.
Germany are heavy odds on to finish top and the shortest price with the bookies to win all their group games, however they lag well behind England and France in the betting to lift the trophy.
How come they are not favourites? It’s at home, right?
Well, the short answer is because they are ranked 16th in the FIFA world rankings with eight European sides ahead of them.
The past 10 years have not been kind to Germany. Since they thrashed the hosts on their way to lifting the World Cup in Rio in 2014 they have suffered an historically bad run, going out in the group stage in both the 2018 World Cup in Russia and Qatar 2022 and losing in pretty dismal fashion in the Round of 16 against England at Wembley at Euro 2020.
The page was turned as Joachim Low departed in 2021 but his replacement Hansi Flick became the first Germany manager to be sacked, ever, when he was axed in September 2023 after three straight defeats, the final straw a 4-1 reverse against Japan, who had also beaten them in Qatar the previous year.
Dark days indeed for German football. Stop chuckling at the back. Flick’s average of 1.72 points per game was the second worst in the history of the Germany national team. Former Bayern boss Julian Nagelsmann took over last September and although his tenure did begin with some iffy results, losing 3-2 to Turkey in Berlin and 2-0 in Austria three days later in particular, friendly wins in March against the might of France and the Netherlands has given hope they have turned the corner.
🇩🇪 Julian Nagelsmann has confirmed that Arsenal’s Kai Havertz will lead the line for Germany at EURO 2024.
🔁 Nagelsmann believes if called upon from the bench, Niclas Füllkrug would have a bigger impact than Havertz would. (Sky Germany) https://t.co/jNLN5v5rHk
The 36-year-old has blended some young stars in with some old heads and sprinkled in some in-form lesser names in an attempt to find the recipe for success on home soil. His greatest master stroke of all might be tempting Toni Kroos out of international retirement for one last dance on home soil this summer.
It didn’t help them break the deadlock in a warm-up game stalemate against Ukraine last week, however, and they limped to victory against Greece on Friday, coming from behind and nicking a late winner.
The fact remains that Germany have not won a knockout game at a major tournament since Euro 2016. That’s eight years and four tournaments ago, just to be clear. They might also have been hindered by automatically qualifying as hosts – their lack of competitive football in the past few years can’t have helped them during such a period of turmoil.
While they possess some wonderful attacking players, the Germans have not kept a clean sheet in a tournament since they faced Slovakia in the Round of 16 that same summer of 2016 – they have conceded in 12 straight matches at World Cups and Euros since then. Unprecedented.
Yes, but that might not be as important as you think, the omens are certainly not great. No country hosting the Euros on their own has lifted the trophy since France in 1984. Three years before Nagelsmann was born and when there were only eight teams present.
In the 16 editions of the Euros only two other sides have lifted the trophy on home soil, Spain in 1964 and Italy four years later – only four teams took part in each of those tournaments.
Only co-hosts Poland and Ukraine, in 2012, and Austria and Switzerland four years earlier have failed to reach the last four, at least, since the tournament’s inception.
However, it’s worth remembering Germany do enjoy playing at home. They lifted the 1974 World Cup on home soil, made the semi-finals of Euro 1988 and then finished third in the 2006 World Cup under Jurgen Klinsmann when they had widely been written off before the tournament, with serious comparisons able to be drawn to this year too.
There will certainly be a powerful wave of emotion fuelling this Germany campaign. Kroos returned to international football having retired three years ago and will be playing the final matches of his glittering career. He bowed out of club football with his sixth Champions League medal but can he add a European Championship to his World Cup medal to complete the set?
He returned for the March friendlies where Germany overcame World Cup runners-up France and quarter-finalists the Netherlands in the space of four days, which bodes well.
He’s arguably still the best player in the German squad which is an eclectic mix of household names – who have possibly seen better days – and some relative unknowns.
Manuel Neuer, Thomas Muller, Ilkay Gundogan and Antonio Rudiger possess a wealth of experience but it might be the new breed of Jamal Musiala, Florian Wirtz and Kai Havertz who hold the hopes of a nation in their hands.
Although they are heavy odds on to finish top of Group A, it would not be a complete shock if Germany faced some stiff competition from Hungary.
Germany came from behind late-on to draw against Marco Rossi’s side in Munich at Euro 2020 and did the same in Budapest in the Nations League in June 2022.
Hungary actually won the return match in Leipzig 1-0 later that year and also beat England home and away in the Nations League.
They qualified top of their group for the first time, finishing unbeaten and four points ahead of Serbia, and only saw a 14-match unbeaten streak ended by a freak breakaway goal in a friendly against the Republic of Ireland in Dublin last week.
After 36 years without a finals appearance Hungary have qualified for the third straight tournament for the first time and are worthy of respect. That second group game in Stuttgart on June 19 (5pm BST) looks huge.
Should Germany manage to finish above the Magyars then they will take on the runners-up in Group C, England’s group – so you’d think that might be Denmark.
In that half of the draw Spain or Italy would likely await the winner in the quarter-final while Portugal could be the semi-final opposition.
England or France would ultimately be lurking as potential opposition in the final in Berlin on July 14.
If that’s not tough enough then it looks even worse were Germany to qualify as runners-up, or even as one of the four best third-place finishers.
If they finish second then Spain or Italy would likely form the opposition in the Round of 16 with England looming as potential quarter-final opponents and France in the semi-final. Portugal, Spain or Italy in the Final would almost feel a relief at that stage.
Can Germany win it? Of course they can. They might be a force in transition but they still possess two of the world’s most exciting talents in Jamal Musiala and Florian Wirtz, they also have the quality, experience and drive of Toni Kroos and the guile of Ilkay Gundogan ahead of him.
Will they win it? Probably not. To do so Germany would likely need to beat three of England, France, Italy and Spain. While their first XI looks a match for most on their day, they lack the squad depth of their rivals and do not possess as many potential match-winners either.
The boss himself is keen to avoid the weight of expectation, urging his squad to try to have fun and ignore the pressure.
Nagelsmann told uefa.com: “It is a huge task, it will be challenging, and it’s certainly not a chance that comes around very often.
“It’s only the second time Germany has hosted a European Championship. For the players, and for myself as a manager, to take part in a tournament on home soil is a unique opportunity.
“There is pressure involved, but more so joy. If we can see that joy on the pitch, then we will have a great tournament.”
Expect to see them have some fun at the expense of Scotland and Switzerland but Hungary might be a different matter. If they finish second in the group then it’s hard to see how they get past Spain or Italy in the Round of 16, even if the home crowd help them, a quarter-final exit at the hands of England would be one which is spoken about for years.
FA chief Mark Bullingham says England have a succession plan in place if Gareth Southgate leaves after Euro 2024.
The head of English football’s governing body also said the Three Lions boss wants to wait until after the tournament to discuss his future.
Southgate contract expires in December and this summer’s European Championship will be his fourth major tournament in charge.
The 53-year-old was previously linked with Manchester United and recently suggested this summer’s tournament in journey could be his last – though Bullingham says no approaches have been made.
“We are sitting down after the tournament together and will talk about everything,” said Bullingham, when asked if he was keen for Southgate to remain in his role.
“Gareth has been really clear that he wants to talk about that after the tournament.
“I don’t want to provide any distraction for him and the team. I want to respect [that].”
NEW | FA chief says there’s been “no approaches” for England boss Gareth Southgate, but it has a “succession plan” in place if manager leaves after Euros https://t.co/xVpC8VExarpic.twitter.com/Qqq0fXzJCO
Bullingham also rubbished suggestions the FA’s hierarchy do not have a plan in place should Southgate depart.
He said: “I’ve seen some things about, ‘Have we got a plan, haven’t we?’ Any organisation has a succession plan in place for their top employees, and we are no different to that.
“A succession plan normally includes everything from what you do for the short-term cover, through to a process you follow, through to [drawing up] a candidate pool. We have that for all our top employees.”
‘I think the world of Gareth’
Though he has not been immune from criticism, Southgate has had a transformative effect on England’s fortunes since taking over in 2016.
And Bullingham suggested he would be keen to keep the 53-year-old in the post past December if he can.
“I would say I think the world of Gareth, I think he has done a phenomenal job,” Bullingham added.
“I think he has transformed the fortunes of our team, and that’s not just off the pitch, and you can see the culture, but also the performances on the pitch.
“Since 1966, he has won about half of our knockout games, which is a measure we really use, so we value him massively.”
Wolves have completed the signing of Portuguese winger Rodrigo Gomes from Braga.
The 20-year-old has signed a five-year contract at Molineux, with the option to extend for a further season.
Manager Gary O’Neil said: “I’m delighted, especially to get one in so early.
“I think in transfer windows it’s very easy for everything to drag on and get done very late, but from a squad point of view – laying plans for next season – it’s really important.
“The type of player Rodrigo is, he had a fantastic season last season, playing in many different positions and he’s only 20 years old.
“For where we are as a club, he’s the perfect type of signing for us. He’s young and has potential.”
The versatile Portugal Under-21s wideman spent last season on loan at Estoril, where he made 30 appearances and scored seven times.
O’Neil added: “He’s not proven at Premier League level yet, but he’s one we can definitely know we can get to that level – we can work with him and help him develop, proving himself in the toughest league in the world.
“I’m really looking forward to working with him, he’s a great character – every time I’ve watched him, his enthusiasm and endeavour has drawn my eyes towards him, so I’m really pleased and he’s a really good signing for us.”
‘Neto inspires me’
Gomes is Wolves’ second signing of the summer after Tommy Doyle joined permanently from Manchester City following a fruitful loan spell last term.
He follows in the footsteps of current Molineux favourite Pedro Neto, who joined from Braga five years ago.
The youngster said: “Since Pedro left Braga, he’s become like a model to follow in the Braga academy because the young players look at him like, ‘One day I want to be like him’. Of course, he is a good player and he inspires me.
“Wolves have a lot of Portuguese players and it makes me more comfortable.
“I’m very excited to help this team and I will do everything to help Wolverhampton.”
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