Germany's U21 internationals already have their sights set on the summer’s European Championship in the Czech Republic (June 17th-30th). Until then, the players are looking to boost their chances of earning a place in the squad by playing well in their league competitions. The 'U21 Overview' is a new series on DFB.de: Every Tuesday we will profile some of the potential players and examine their form at club level.
Geis – up and coming set piece specialist
The three U21 internationals from 1. FSV Mainz – Loris Karius, Johannes Geis and Junus Malli – all took a great step towards ensuring their Bundesliga status for the next season, winning 2-0 against Schalke 04 and thus moving up to 10th place. Keeper Karius played a big role in their win, making crucial saves against Huntelaar and Matip in the early stages of the match. Geis had a hand in both goals for Mainz, as his corners led to Stefan Bell scoring a brace.
Geis has collected eight scorer-points this season, all coming from dead ball situations. He was close to adding more scorer-points to his tally against Schalke, but Fährmann saved his initial free kick attempt, before his next strike hit the post. S04 also hit the woodwork in the closing stages of the game, but in the end suffered a deserved defeat.
U21 keeper encounter ends in draw
The Rhine derby between 1. FC Köln and Bayer 04 Leverkusen was also an encounter between two Germany U21 keepers in Timo Horn (Köln) and Bernd Leno (Bayer 04). Leverkusen pushed for the opener in the early stages of the game with Horn making saves against Papadopoulos and Bender. Leno was also called to action against Osako, denying the Köln striker from a tight angle. Two minutes before the half-time break Horn saved a soft penalty against Hakan Calhanoglu to keep the score level after 45 minutes.
Both teams scored in the second half, with Bayer 04 taking the lead through U20 international Julian Brandt on the hour mark. Bard Finne bagged the equaliser with less than ten minutes left to play. In both cases the keepers were not to be blamed. In the end, the encounter between the U21 keepers ended in a 1-1 draw, with both players showing a good performance. Timo Horn was happy after the game about making his first penalty-save in his 30th top flight appearance: "That was the kind of save that makes it worthwhile to be a keeper," said Köln's keeper to Kicker.de. "I'm happy that I was able to help my team."
Hofmann, Orban and Zimmer looking to secure promotion
1. FC Kaiserslautern landed a vital victory on the road in the 2. Bundesliga against VfL Bochum. U21 international Jean Zimmer was involved in the build-up for the opener, as his charge down the right side allowed Michael Schulze to set up Simon Zoller for the 1-0 lead.
Philipp Hofmann bagged his sixth goal of the season in the second half, doubling Kaiserslautern's advantage with less than 15 minutes left to play. Bochum were unable to stage a comeback as the visitors showed great efficiency to grab the three points on the road. With four games left to play Kaiserslautern are still in the direct promotion spot, but need to maintain their concentration as Karlsruher SC are only two points behind them.