Netherlands vs. Germany: UEFA Nations League CONFIRMED ...
Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala will be hoping to shine against the Dutch in Amsterdam. - © IMAGO/Maximilian Koch
Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala will be hoping to shine against the Dutch in Amsterdam. - © IMAGO/Maximilian Koch
A UEFA Nations League Group A3 encounter in Amsterdam couldn't be more enticing, with international rivals the Netherlands and Germany having both hit five in respective, impressive opening section wins.
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Brobbey rolls Tah inside the box and lays it off for Gakpo too shoot, forcing Ter Stegen to make a brilliant save to keep it out. It wouldn't have counted though, as the flag goes up for offside.
The Netherlands winger cuts in from the left, skips past Andrich to set himself up for a shot in a central position. He drags it well wide of the the post though.
The hosts have kept possession well over the past few minutes and have largely been camped out inside the Netherlands' half.
Groß does really well to win possession off Reijnders in midfield and Germany sprint forward from there. Havertz gets to the edge of the box and slides it to his left to Musiala, who cuts onto his right foot and aims to curl a shot inside the far post. It's well struck but takes a deflection off a defender and loops out for a corner.
Gravenberch pings an exquisite 40-yard pass from the right wing, inch perfect into the path of Xavi, who's got behind the Germany defence. He races into the box and gets a left-footed shot away, under pressure from Musiala, but Ter Stegen is well placed to make a good save.
Tah has struggled to get to grips with former Leipzig forward Brobbey so far, the latter's pace and muscular physique causing Germany's defence all sorts of problems.
© Getty Images
Schlotterbeck concedes a free-kick on Germany's left, not far outside the penalty area. Xavi curls it into the box and finds Dumfries, unmarked on the edge of the six-yard box. Somehow he heads it over though, with the goal at his mercy! That should have been 2-0.
Schlotterbeck rises highest in the box to meet a corner but he can't keep his header down.
Wirtz is involved once more, again in the right-hand channel as he threads a pass into Havertz's run. The Arsenal forward shoots first time with his weaker right foot but can only find the side netting.
Neat interplay on the right from Nagelsmann's side, culminating in Wirtz whipping a cross to the near post for Undav. He controls it well but De Ligt is behind him and pokes away.
A long ball from Ter Stegen almost lets Wirtz in, but Verbruggen is alive to the danger on the edge of his area, juggling the ball with his chest and head before clearing.
Tah fouls Brobbey halfway into Germany's half, giving the hosts a free-kick. Xavi whips it into the box from deep and it momentarily looks like causing havoc, but Germany eventually clear.
The Netherlands go in front, and all too easily from a German perspective. Verbruggen punts a long ball forward into midfield, where former Bayern midfielder Gravenberch collects it. He spies the run of Reijnders, who's split Tah and Schlotterbeck and somehow has a run run at goal before coolly slotting past Ter Stegen.
Leipzig's Xavi has the first touch of the game as the home side kick things off.
The players are now out on the pitch as the national anthems blare out.
There's quite the pre-match display going on in Amsterdam, with flashing lights, a string band, a singer and a real sense of atmosphere building.
The players have already taken to the field at the Johan Cruijff ArenA in Amsterdam to get a feel for conditions under foot.
© Imago Images
1:27
If you want to know just what Deniz Undav brings to the table, look no further!
Julian Nagelsmann has kept almost exactly the same starting XI from the Hungary game, with just one change. Niclas Füllkrug's injury means he has already left the team camp, and he's replace in the lone striker role by VfB Stuttgart's Deniz Undav. That keeps Kai Havertz - the other possible replacement for Füllkrug, in attacking midfield alongside Jamal Musiala and Florian Wirtz.
Verbruggen - Dumfries, De Ligt, Van Dijk (c), Aké - Schouten, Reijnders, Gravenberch - Xavi, Brobbey, Gakpo
Olij, Flekken, Geertruida, J. Timber, Weghorst, Zirkzee, Q. Timber, Kluivert, Malen, Van Hecke, Hato
Ter Stegen - Kimmich (c), Tah, Schlotterbeck, Raum - Andrich, Groß - Musiala, Havertz, Wirtz - Undav
Baumann, Nübel, Koch, Anton, Führich, Beier, Pavlović, Mittelstädt, Stiller, Henrichs, Can
0:33
Watch: Germany's final training session
"The Netherlands has a very good team. The player have great potential and play with real variation. Individually, they are better equipped than the Hungarians. They have a good mix of quality and physicality. I hope the stadium is full and we have a great atmosphere. It will undoubtedly be an exciting match, and we are looking forward to it."
© Alexander Hassenstein
Nagelsmann has revealed that Niclas Füllkrug is a doubt for the game in Amsterdam due to a calf problem. The ex-Hannover, Bremen and Dortmund striker took his tally to 14 goals in 22 senior internationals with his strike against Hungary.
© IMAGO/Bai Xuefei
Former Bayern defender Matthijs de Ligt will start against Germany, despite his mistake that allowed former Wolfsburg striker Edin Džeko in to score in the Netherlands' 5-2 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina. "We have discussed it," Koeman said at his pre-match press conference. "He did not get his footwork right. It was a bad individual moment for a defender. You have to learn from that, it is clear that these kinds of moments need to be improved. But we should not be dramatic about it and put too much emphasis on it. He will start."
© IMAGO/Norbert SCHMIDT
1:49
This fixture tends to produce plenty of fireworks and with two of the Bundesliga's biggest talents in Xavi and Musiala facing off at the Johan Cruyff Arena, we're in for a special treat on Tuesday.
A key member of a new Germany era, Jamal Musiala showed his immense value to the cause in the Group A3 win against Hungary, a game in which he scored once and provided three assists. "The more games we have the more we'll build chemistry and get a feel for one another," the Bayern Munich star tole UEFA's official website on Saturday. "We don't just want to have fun and not work hard, we want to have both sides of that. We have so much quality on the pitch, up front and at the back so everyone can play good football," he added.
© IMAGO/Malte Ossowski / SVEN SIMON
This will be the 47th international meeting between these sides and Germany hold the head-to-head lead, with 17 wins to the Netherlands' 12. There have been 17 draws. The teams last met in a friendly in March, which Julian Nagelsmann's side won 2-1 thanks to goals from Maximilian Mittelstädt and Niclas Füllkrug.
© IMAGO/Jürgen Kessler
1:39
Florian Wirtz has started 2024/25 with a bang. Along with enjoying Supercup glory with Bayer Leverkusen, the attacking wizard has weighed in with two goals and an assist in the Bundesliga. The 21-year-old netted his fourth international goal in what was his 24th senior international appearance for Germany at the weekend.
Both Germany and the Netherlands won their opening Group A3 games over the weekend and both hit five goals. Tuesday's visitors to Amsterdam were handsome 5-0 victors against Hungary in Düsseldorf while the Dutch defeated Bosnia 5-2.
© IMAGO/Gerhard Schultheiß
Hello and welcome to bundesliga.com's coverage of Tuesday's Nations League encounter between the Netherlands and Germany!
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Germany began life without the legendary retired quartet of Ilkay Gündoğan, Manuel Neuer, Thomas Müller and Toni Kroos in style, hammering Hungary 5-0 in Düsseldorf. Jamal Musiala proved unplayable in that game, creating three of the goals for his teammates and scoring once himself too. That performance will have delighted head coach Julian Nagelsmann, as further goals from Niclas Füllkrug, Florian Wirtz, Aleksandar Pavlović and Kai Havertz saw his next gen side immediately find fifth gear. Füllkrug has picked up an injury since then, so Stuttgart striker Deniz Undav begins in his place up top.
Like Germany, Netherlands kicked off their Group A3 campaign with victory, beating Bosnia & Herzegovina 5-2 to leave them trailing the Germans on goal difference at the top. There were familiar faces on the scoresheet in that win, with former Bayern man Joshua Zirkzee opening the scoring for the Dutch before both former Wolfsburg and Hoffenheim striker Wout Weghortst and RB Leipzig's Paris Saint-Germain loanee Xavi found the back of the net. There was even a goal for VfB Stuttgart's Ermedin Demerović, albeit for the opposition. Ronald Koeman has a number of Bundesliga favourites both past and present in his ranks, with Lutsharel Geertruida (RB Leipzig) and Donyell Malen (Borussia Dortmund) plying their trade in Germany's top flight. Jeremie Frimpong (Bayer Leverkusen) was named in the squad, but has left the camp on personal grounds. Brian Brobbey, Ryan Gravenberch and Justin Kluivert will also be remembered for their time in the Bundesliga, while former Bayern defender Matthijs de Ligt gets an almost immediate reunion with his ex-teammates, having moved to England in the summer.
Watch: Wirtz and Groß show off their skills in Germany training
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Musiala has scored five of his six senior international goals to date under Nagelsmann. Nagelsmann's Germany beat the Netherlands 2-1 in a March 2024 friendly. It is one of eight wins in 14 games since he succeeded Hansi Flick as head coach almost one year ago, on 22 September 2023. De Ligt made 53 Bundesliga appearances across two seasons at Bayern, winning the title in 2022/23. Frimpong (2023/24) and Zirkzee (2019/20) have also won the Bundesliga's top prize. Germany are four-time FIFA World Cup winners and three-time European champions, but have yet to reach the final four in three editions of the Nations League. This will be the 47th meeting between Germany and the Netherlands. Germany have won 17, whilst drawing 17 and losing 12.CONFIRMED line-ups
Netherlands: Verbruggen - Dumfries, De Ligt, Van Dijk (c), Aké - Schouten, Reijnders, Gravenberch - Xavi, Brobbey, GakpoSubs: Olij, Flekken, Geertruida, J. Timber, Weghorst, Zirkzee, Q. Timber, Kluivert, Malen, Van Hecke, HatoOut: Frimpong (personal)Coach: Ronald Koeman
Germany: Ter Stegen - Kimmich (c), Tah, Schlotterbeck, Raum - Andrich, Groß - Musiala, Havertz, Wirtz - UndavSubs: Baumann, Nübel, Koch, Anton, Führich, Beier, Pavlović, Mittelstädt, Stiller, Henrichs, CanOut: Füllkrug (calf)Not included: Gündoğan (retired), Kroos (retired), Müller (retired), Neuer (retired), Rüdiger (rested), Sané (match fitness)Coach: Julian Nagelsmann
