France has its star striker Kylian Mbappé – and national coach Julian Nagelsmann is relying on his “three magicians” in the offensive of the German national soccer team.
The newly formed offensive midfield line with captain llkay Gündogan (33) and the two young stars Jamal Musiala (21) and Florian Wirtz (20) should develop into the trump card for the home European Championship after the radical restructuring of the DFB team. Time is of the essence: Today in Lyon the trio will experience their baptism of fire in the first international match of the year against the European Championship favorites and World Cup runners-up France in the new constellation.
“It is important that we also have players on the field like the three who have the ability to shape games and decide in the offensive area,” said Nagelsmann during the final training session at the Groupama Stadium. The national coach was impressed by what Gündogan, Wirtz and Musiala offered him in the training sessions. “We worked well during the week. The three magicians have a lot of freedom,” said the 36-year-old.
Time is running out until the home tournament
There is no question: As a game designer, Wirtz played an outstanding role in the fantastic season of the still unbeaten league leaders Bayer Leverkusen, and not just in the Bundesliga. And the form curve and goal tally of the individual Musiala, who is such a strong dribbler, is also rising steeply at FC Bayern. “I’m having more fun again. And now it’s about keeping up with the form. There are important games coming,” said Musiala, not only about the club’s workload. There are still 83 days until the European Championship opening game against Scotland.
Captain Gündogan sees it as his job in the DFB selection to showcase the youngster duo and lead them on the pitch. However, he described his role in Lyon modestly. “You don’t need to say much about Jamal and Flo. The two boys are in top form. I see it a bit like the two of them should provide the magic and then I can strike the right balance between too much magic and too much few.”
“It worked very well in training”
The FC Barcelona professional said before his 74th international match that he wanted to support the boys with his experience. And after the intensive preparation for the big French test, Gündogan is quite confident that something will happen with Nagelsmann’s magician trio. “It worked very well with the ball in training,” said Gündogan.
No question: Gündogan, Wirtz, Musiala and, before that, Arsenal professional Kai Havertz as a strong center forward, this offensive quartet could actually create successful attack combinations that ultimately lead to goals and victories.
Effectiveness at Wirtz and Musiala can be improved
The highly praised youngsters Wirtz and Musiala in the national jersey will have to significantly increase their effectiveness if the home European Championship from June 14th to July 14th is to be successful for the hosts. Wirtz is still waiting for his first goal after 14 international matches. And Musiala’s rate of two goals in 25 games is also a long way from what he achieved in the Bayern jersey.
But Nagelsmann doesn’t want to build up pressure. He relies on lightness, desire and playfulness in his magicians. “We have the pressure that we want to be successful. But we would do well to enjoy the fact that we have a home European Championship in front of us,” said the national coach before the big European Championship test against the strong French team around Kylian Mbappe.
