Germany will take on Denmark in the first of two international friendlies, which they will play ahead of their UEFA Euro 2020 campaign.
Following a disastrous 2018 FIFA World Cup campaign, Joachim Low’s side have made improvements in many aspects, but they still are a few miles off from where their fans would want them to be. While they have lost only two of their last 11 games, they have drawn four games.
Low will step down from his role after the UEFA Euro 2020, and while his story with Die Mannschaft has been predominantly a successful one, the happy ending will certainly act as the cherry on top.
All of that being said, Germany could ill-afford to take Denmark lightly. Kasper Hjulmand’s team has been excellent in their recent matches. They have lost only one of their last ten matches and have won a staggering eight of those games.
Their attackers have been ruthless, and their tally of 20 goals in the last six matches is a testament to that. Denmark will be in a tough group in the Euro, consisting of Belgium and Russia. They would want to go into the competition high on confidence.
With the UEFA Champions League ending only yesterday, both coaches will likely rest the players who featured in that match. Hence, Kai Havertz, Timo Werner, Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen might not play this game.
Key Players
With Timo Werner likely to get some rest, Serge Gnabry is expected to lead the line for Germany in this match. The 25-year-old forward from Bayern Munich has scored 15 goals in just 20 matches for his nation. In his last 15 appearances, he has found the back of the net 11 times. Gnabry didn’t have the greatest of seasons in 2020/21, as he could only manage to score 11 goals, less than half of his last season’s tally. But at the same time, it has to be noted that he has been very clinical in almost every game he has played for his country.
Gnarby’s teammate at Bayern Munich, Joshua Kimmich, has established himself as one of the best full-backs in the world currently active. He is a very versatile footballer and can also be used as a midfielder. Kimmich has scored 3 goals for Germany, and while it might not be bad for a defender, his name is often present in Bayern Munich’s score-sheet. Kimmich scored 6 goals in 39 games for the German outfit in this season. He was a part of the Team of the Tournament of UEFA Euro 2020 and would want to repeat the same this time around.
While Germany certainly have a very balanced squad, what will bother their fans is that neither of their two first-choice attackers, Werner and Gnabry, have been clinical this season. In such a situation, experienced campaigner Thomas Muller will have a big role to play. He has played 100 games for the nation and has scored 38 goals. While he has scored only one goal in his last 11 appearances for Germany, Muller has scored 15 goals for Bayern Munich in this season.
For Denmark, Christian Eriksen will be the most important player. While things have not really gone his way at his club Inter Milan, Eriksen always proves to be deadly when he dons the red and white. He has scored 36 goals in 106 appearances for his nation. In the current Danish team, not only is he the most-capped player, but also the only player to have scored in double-digits for the country, which highlights his importance in the team. Though he has scored only 4 goals in this season for Inter Mila, in his last 21 appearances for Denmark, Eriksen has scored 11 goals.
Prediction
There is no doubt that Germany are the better team on paper. They have a plethora of world-class players in their ranks, and if they all turn up and play their part on the given day, it could be an easy victory for Die Mannschaft. But the reality is not what the team sheets might reflect.
Joachim Low’s men lost their last game against North Macedonia by a margin of 2-1, while the wounds from the 6-0 defeat against Spain still haven’t healed completely. On the other hand, Denmark defeated a strong Austria team in their last game quite comfortably, by a margin of 4-0.
In 2020, they got better quality teams like England and Sweden, while they also scored 8 goals against Moldova. Considering all of that, alongside the factor that Low might have to rest a few vital players, this game can be a lot more closely contested than one might think. While Germany will still start with the favourites’ tag, it will not be a total surprise if Denmark manage to hold them to a draw.
