The Germany U21 side were on the front foot for the entirety of their first European Qualifier of 2024 against Kosovo, but let a number of clear-cut chances go begging as the match ended in a stalemate. Antonio Di Salvo’s side dropped points for the first time in Group D after the 0-0 draw in Chemnitz, which puts them two points behind Poland with a game in hand.
“It’s painful. We imagined the game turning out differently,” said Di Salvo after the draw. “We wanted to start the year out with a win. We didn’t manage to do that, which is really disappointing.”
Germany started the game brightly in front of a 6,899-strong crowd at the Stadion an der Gellertstraße and had the lion’s share of possession from the outset. However, the home side found it difficult to carve out opportunities against the visitors from Kosovo, who were more than happy to sit back and soak up the pressure. Rocco Reitz had the first big chance in the 15th minute of the game. After Kosovo looked to progress up the pitch for the first time, Borussia Mönchengladbach’s midfield talent caught the away side off guard and found himself in some space around 16 yards out. Reitz got a shot off, but it was too central and posed little threat to Kosovo keeper Mustafe Abdullahu.
Germany in and around the box
The hosts knocked the ball around the opposition’s penalty area time and again as they sought to find the gaps in the Kosovo defence. Brajan Gruda’s back-heel found Youssoufa Moukoko, who sent Ansgar Knauff through on goal. However, Magdeburg’s Andi Hoti put in a last-ditch tackle to neutralise the threat. Colin Noah Kleine-Bekel was replaced by Jamil Siebert just after the half-hour mark due to an injury.
Just before the break, Merlin Röhl picked up the ball in a promising position following a counterattack. However, his effort deflected off a Kosovo defender, which made life a lot easier for keeper Abdullahu.
Moukoko and Röhl with huge chances
Germany picked up right where they left off after half-time and looked to break the deadlock. The first real chance of the second 45 fell to Moukoko, but his effort went just past the post (48’). Two minutes later, Knauff smashed the ball over the bar. The hosts kept knocking on the door as the second half progressed, with Röhl spurning a huge chance from close range after Abdullahu’s save from a deflected Siebert shot landed right at the Freiburg midfielder’s feet (59’).
Germany kept the pressure on their opponents and the quality of their chances gradually increased as the clock ticked towards the 90-minute mark. The ball fell to an unmarked Moukoko after a flick-on from Gruda, but the Dortmund striker blazed it over the bar (64’). Martel’s header from Gruda’s free-kick was inches away from giving Germany the lead in the 67th minute. With fifteen minutes to go, substitute Nick Woltemade tried his luck, but saw his shot saved by an on-form Abdullahu.
Sieb comes on for debut
Armindo Sieb came on in the 84th minute of the match for Brajan Gruda to make his first appearance for the U21s. Germany refused to let up and kept pushing until the final whistle, but were not rewarded for their efforts. The final chance of the match resulted from Martel’s inch-perfect cross in towards Sieb, but Greuther Fürth’s number 30 headed it straight at Abdullahu (90+6’).
The Germany U21 side were on the front foot for the entirety of their first European Qualifier of 2024 against Kosovo, but let a number of clear-cut chances go begging as the match ended in a stalemate. Antonio Di Salvo’s side dropped points for the first time in Group D after the 0-0 draw in Chemnitz, which puts them two points behind Poland with a game in hand.
“It’s painful. We imagined the game turning out differently,” said Di Salvo after the draw. “We wanted to start the year out with a win. We didn’t manage to do that, which is really disappointing.”
Germany started the game brightly in front of a 6,899-strong crowd at the Stadion an der Gellertstraße and had the lion’s share of possession from the outset. However, the home side found it difficult to carve out opportunities against the visitors from Kosovo, who were more than happy to sit back and soak up the pressure. Rocco Reitz had the first big chance in the 15th minute of the game. After Kosovo looked to progress up the pitch for the first time, Borussia Mönchengladbach’s midfield talent caught the away side off guard and found himself in some space around 16 yards out. Reitz got a shot off, but it was too central and posed little threat to Kosovo keeper Mustafe Abdullahu.
Germany in and around the box
The hosts knocked the ball around the opposition’s penalty area time and again as they sought to find the gaps in the Kosovo defence. Brajan Gruda’s back-heel found Youssoufa Moukoko, who sent Ansgar Knauff through on goal. However, Magdeburg’s Andi Hoti put in a last-ditch tackle to neutralise the threat. Colin Noah Kleine-Bekel was replaced by Jamil Siebert just after the half-hour mark due to an injury.
Just before the break, Merlin Röhl picked up the ball in a promising position following a counterattack. However, his effort deflected off a Kosovo defender, which made life a lot easier for keeper Abdullahu.
Moukoko and Röhl with huge chances
Germany picked up right where they left off after half-time and looked to break the deadlock. The first real chance of the second 45 fell to Moukoko, but his effort went just past the post (48’). Two minutes later, Knauff smashed the ball over the bar. The hosts kept knocking on the door as the second half progressed, with Röhl spurning a huge chance from close range after Abdullahu’s save from a deflected Siebert shot landed right at the Freiburg midfielder’s feet (59’).
Germany kept the pressure on their opponents and the quality of their chances gradually increased as the clock ticked towards the 90-minute mark. The ball fell to an unmarked Moukoko after a flick-on from Gruda, but the Dortmund striker blazed it over the bar (64’). Martel’s header from Gruda’s free-kick was inches away from giving Germany the lead in the 67th minute. With fifteen minutes to go, substitute Nick Woltemade tried his luck, but saw his shot saved by an on-form Abdullahu.
Sieb comes on for debut
Armindo Sieb came on in the 84th minute of the match for Brajan Gruda to make his first appearance for the U21s. Germany refused to let up and kept pushing until the final whistle, but were not rewarded for their efforts. The final chance of the match resulted from Martel’s inch-perfect cross in towards Sieb, but Greuther Fürth’s number 30 headed it straight at Abdullahu (90+6’).
The U21s will have the chance to make amends on Tuesday (18:00 CET), as they take on Israel in another European qualifier.
