The game took a lot out of the players. Recovery and physiotherapy are scheduled for the Germany U17 national team after their 3-1 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina. Meikel Schönweitz’s side had to come from behind in their second match of the U17 European Championships. The team took charge, showed character and picked up three points, putting them on track for the quarterfinals. One of the main components of Germany’s attack was Hertha BSC’s Arne Maier.
“It was a very good team performance to come back from going 1-0 down in the second minute,” said the 17-year-old. “Conceding early fired us up. Consequently, we went on the attack and believed that we could win all the way through.” The U17 captain Atakan Akkaynak equalised from the penalty spot before Yari Otto collected a brace in the second half, giving the Germany youth side a 3-1 win. “We had chances to score more but need to be more effective,” said Maier, who worked hard on the wing and put a lot of balls into the box. The Germany U17s interplay was good and they often combined well to break through the compact Bosnian defence.
Maier: “We want to win against Austria”
“On the one hand, we use our training sessions to refine the way we play,” explained Maier. “On the other hand, we get along well on and off the pitch and enjoy doing things together in our free time. The good chemistry in the squad can only be good for our performances.” There are no cliques in the U17s. When they eat, train and meet they are always together in a group. If someone makes a mistake the next man covers for them. They work well as a team and it is something that Austria will notice.
In their third group match of the campaign the DFB-side will face off against their neighbours (19:15 local time, 17:15 CEST), in a match to determine who will win the group. Austria won 2-0 against both Bosnia and Herzegovina and Ukraine, meaning they currently stand two points clear of Germany. “We want to win our group with a victory over Austria,” said Maier, who added jokingly, “It would also be good to not go behind for once.”
Maier’s role model is World Champion Julian Draxler
The Brandenburg born player is is often in a good mood and is a very sociable person. He shares a room with Kai Havertz from Bayer Leverkusen, another attacker, when away with the U17s. He also speaks a lot with Florian Baak, who he plays with for Hertha’s youth team in the Bundesliga north-north-west U17 league. At the moment the DFB-duo are second in the league with Wolfsburg leading the way in first. Baak is a ahead of Maier on the goals front, with twelve in the league compared to Maier’s five. “I enjoy setting up my team mates so that they can score,” said the midfielder, who has 13 assists in the current season. His role model Julian Draxler plays in a similar position to him. His passing, way he moves towards goal, his dribbling – they are all things that Maier thinks he can learn from him.
Perhaps it will help Germany U17s in their next match. Maier has two main aims against Austria – to give assists and win. If he succeeds the U17s will finish their group on top.