Germany’s “New Team” Triumphs, Qualifies, and Exposes the Netherlands
Germany’s national team clinched a hard-fought 1-0 victory over the Netherlands in Munich on Monday, securing their place in the quarterfinals of the UEFA Nations League. The match, was part of the fourth round of Group C in League A.
The star of the night was 23-year-old Stuttgart striker Jamie Leweling, who was called into the starting XI after Deniz Undav picked up an injury during warm-ups. Leweling seized the opportunity, netting his first international goal in the 64th minute.
With this result, Germany, still unbeaten in this Nations League campaign (three wins, one draw), secured one of the top two spots in the group, sitting on 10 points. The Netherlands, who tasted defeat for the first time in the tournament after one win and two draws, now trail the Germans by five points.
The two European powerhouses, both four-time World Cup winners, had played out a 2-2 draw in their previous meeting at the Johan Cruyff Arena in Amsterdam on September 10.
In the other Group C match, Hungary claimed their first victory by defeating bottom-placed Bosnia and Herzegovina 2-0. Dominik Szoboszlai, Liverpool’s dynamic midfielder, struck twice (38’ and a penalty at 50’), pushing Hungary up to third place with five points.
The top two teams from each group in League A will progress to the quarterfinals.
Nagelsmann made several tactical adjustments from the lineup that earned a 2-1 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina last Friday. He introduced five new players, including goalkeeper Oliver Baumann, defender Nico Schlotterbeck, midfielders Alexander Pavlovic and Angelo Stiller, and winger Jamie Leweling, who was selected due to Jamal Musiala’s injury.
On the Dutch side, coach Ronald Koeman had to reshuffle his defense, particularly with captain Virgil van Dijk unavailable. Youngster Jurriël Hato, just 18 years old, started at left-back, while Brian Brobbey replaced Joshua Zirkzee up front.
Germany thought they had taken an early lead just two minutes in when Leweling found the net, but the goal was disallowed by VAR due to an offside by Serge Gnabry, who had provided the assist.
Leweling continued to threaten, narrowly missing out on a goal in the 28th minute, only for Dutch defender Stefan de Vrij to make a last-ditch clearance on the line.
Despite Germany’s dominance, they couldn’t find the breakthrough in the first half. The Netherlands, meanwhile, struggled to create any clear-cut chances, failing to shoot a single shot on target before halftime.
Nagelsmann made adjustments early in the second half, bringing on Robert Andrich for the underperforming Florian Wirtz to add more drive in midfield. Koeman also made two substitutions to bolster his team.
The breakthrough finally came in the 64th minute when Leweling volleyed home a powerful right-footed strike from a Joshua Kimmich corner, with Tim Kleindienst providing the assist. The goal secured Germany a well-deserved victory and confirmed their spot in the UEFA Nations League quarterfinals.
