Ahead of the Euro 2024, Germany is still far from being ready for the tournament, but coach Julian Nagelsmann adds that the team does not exert any pressure.
Germany faces France in a friendly on Saturday before hosting the Netherlands three days later.
Nagelsmann, who took over following Hansi Flick’s sacking in September, has had a mixed start. He won and drew during a United States trip in October, followed by two straight losses in Austria and at home against Turkey in November.
According to seatsnet.com, ticket sales have been high for Germany in its revival phase with Nagelsmann in charge, but progress has again slowed.
The loss against Turkey and Austria was a massive dent in their progress. Just when the German fans felt like celebrating, they came crashing down.
“In the last two games, we had maybe too many attack-minded players on the pitch,” Nagelsmann told a news conference on Friday. “This week, we worked well in training, and I am confident we will deliver a good performance tomorrow.”
“On the pressure issue, I have to repeat that these are things brought in from the outside. This pseudo-pressure is not about life or death.”
The four-time world champions have had very little success in the national jersey since their 2014 FIFA World Cup win against Argentina.
While German fans were quite positive about the 2022 FIFA World Cup, with platforms such as seatsnet.com seeing massive demand, the side failed to advance beyond the group stage.
When you look back at international tournaments, the side crashed in the first round of the last two World Cups and was eliminated in the round of 16 in the Euros.
This EURO was meant to be Germany’s turnaround year. The team hopes to reach the finals, but they are far from the rest of the teams in the competition.
Success-starved German fans have grown impatient ahead of the tournament, which starts in Germany on June 14 and will see the hosts face Scotland.
For Julian Nagesmann, who took over Hansi Flick’s job, it’s a massive mountain to climb. After being let go by Bayern Munich, Naglesmann has limited time to plot a turnaround for the country when they host the European Championship.
Nagelsmann adds that there is pressure around the team to succeed, but he is confident that the side can succeed.
“The pressure we have is the pressure to be successful, but all the rest are issues brought in from outside. Sporting success is one part of life, but I will not go crazy over something fun for me since the age of three,” Nagelsmann said.
The Germans will also play Ukraine in Nuremberg on June 3 before taking on Greece in Monchengladbach four days later in their last friendly matches before the Euros start.
“It’s football, and it should awaken emotions. We will try to win, and if not, we will try again on Tuesday.”
Ronaldo Positive for Euro Success with Portugal
Portugal’s legendary striker Cristiano Ronaldo is set for his final hurrah in the national jersey, but it feels like Roberto Martinez’s squad without Ronaldo is well off.
The most-capped Portuguese player with 205 appearances and leading goalscorer is still an integral part of the Portuguese squad for Euro 2024 as he looks to end his international stint with a possible silverware.
The Al-Nassr frontman sat out Thursday’s friendly with Sweden, though. Martinez gave him a rest but is expected to return on Tuesday as the Selecao take on Slovenia.
While Ronaldo was absent, Portugal scored five against the Swedes, with five players scoring. There was even a new goalscoring number seven, which has been few and far between in the past two decades.
Since the footballing world saw Ronaldo in 2007 in the number seven jersey, Ronaldo has rarely relinquished it. Against Sweden, though, there was a chance for Bruma to claim the iconic number.
The Braga winger is among the few players to have worn #7 for Portugal alongside Ronaldo. Former Wolves winger Trincao wore the jersey in a friendly with Qatar in 2021, while midfielder Sergio Oliveira did the honors the previous year in a UEFA Nations League victory over Croatia.
Bruma, who came on at halftime against Sweden, scored the fourth of Portugal’s five goals in a 5-2 victory. Other players who scored goals were Rafael Leao, Matheus Nunes, Bruno Fernandes, and Goncalo Ramos. Ramos has been one of the highlights for Portugal, building a name for himself after the FIFA World Cup.
One of the questions that most fans constantly ask on ticketing platforms such as Seatsnet.com is whether Ronaldo will start for Portugal this Euros.
In the concluded World Cup, Ronaldo was benched for the final few games, and several misalignments led to lousy team chemistry. Ronaldo showed dissent, and Portugal crashed out of the World Cup in the quarterfinals.
However, Martinez feels like it is a good headache to have Ronaldo.
“A coach likes to have headaches, but the March training camp is not the time for that,” manager Martinez said after his team’s victory. “This is the time to gather information and create team spirit. May 19, the day before the call-up, is the day to have headaches.”
Ronaldo moved to Al-Nassr midway through the 2022-23 season and was already playing in Saudi Arabia when Portugal began its Euro 2024 qualifying campaign.
Although initially overlooked, Martinez took the initiative to bring back the legendary striker to the team.
Since then, he has been unstoppable.
He scored ten times in qualifying, with only Belgium frontman Romelu Lukaku scoring more, and helped Martinez’s team win all 10 qualifying games.
Glimpses of the 2016 final will remain fresh with the fans, where an underdog team led by Ronaldo went on to bring greatness to the nation.
The 2016 winners will kick off their campaign on June 18 with the Czech Republic in Leipzig. They will then face Turkey in Dortmund before rounding off the group stage with a match in Gelsenkirchen against the Georgia vs Greece play-off winner.
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