There’s real anticipation and excitement building in the Germany camp ahead of tonight’s quarterfinal clash with Spain (18:00 CEST). The U17s are looking to build upon the three victories they’ve already recorded at the European Championship. "Spain against Germany is an absolute classic, regardless of whether it’s the senior or youth teams playing," remarked U17 manager Christian Wück. "There are no easy opponents in the quarterfinals but coming up against such a well-renowned side could be an advantage for us. My players aren’t taking the match lightly."
The manager is feeling optimistic even though he knows his side aren’t going to be afforded the same amount of space on the pitch as in the game against the Czech Republic (4-0). "It will be an entirely different game. It’s a meeting of two similar sides," mentioned Wück. "The better side on the day will win." There are absolutely no doubts amongst the Germany squad that it’ll be them who reach the semifinals. "We have a score to settle with Spain. We’ll emerge victorious this time," said defender Jonas Busam to DFB.de.
Revenge for two defeats in October
Spain defeated Germany in two friendlies (1-0 and 2-0) back in October 2014. Things were different back then though. "Spain were already well-practiced and used to playing together because they had to take part in the first qualifying rounds of the European Championship," explained Wück. "We didn’t have to participate in that stage and were still trying to figure out our best side, formation and approaches. The squad is completely different now."
As well as having a different line-up to half a year ago, the German U17s will have a different approach and attitude going into the game. "Those matches were a wake-up call for my team. We discovered where we needed to improve. We’ve now dealt with these weaknesses."
Clash between two evenly matched teams
The fans can expect a battle between two evenly matched sides. It would appear that Germany have the advantage going into the game given both team’s performances in the competition so far. Christian Wück’s side took nine points, scoring nine goals and conceding none. On the other hand, a 1-1 draw with Austria and a narrow 2-1 win against hosts Bulgaria meant that Spain required a point against group leaders Croatia in their final game to secure passage. The last group game finished goalless.
Spain haven’t scored any goals from open play so far at the tournament. Two free kicks and a penalty were enough to secure second place in Group A and a place in the quarterfinals.
The other quarterfinals see Belgium take on Croatia (today, 15:00 CEST), France meet Italy (16th May, 18:00 CEST) and England face Russia (16th May, 15:00 CEST). If Germany come out on top today, they will face the winner of the England-Russia match in the semifinals. The losers in both ties will come up against each other in the World Cup play-offs. Six European sides will qualify for the upcoming tournament in Chile (17th October – 8th November). Securing a World Cup berth is the minimum Christian Wück is expecting his side to achieve in the European Championship.
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There’s real anticipation and excitement building in the Germany camp ahead of tonight’s quarterfinal clash with Spain (18:00 CEST). The U17s are looking to build upon the three victories they’ve already recorded at the European Championship. "Spain against Germany is an absolute classic, regardless of whether it’s the senior or youth teams playing," remarked U17 manager Christian Wück. "There are no easy opponents in the quarterfinals but coming up against such a well-renowned side could be an advantage for us. My players aren’t taking the match lightly."
The manager is feeling optimistic even though he knows his side aren’t going to be afforded the same amount of space on the pitch as in the game against the Czech Republic (4-0). "It will be an entirely different game. It’s a meeting of two similar sides," mentioned Wück. "The better side on the day will win." There are absolutely no doubts amongst the Germany squad that it’ll be them who reach the semifinals. "We have a score to settle with Spain. We’ll emerge victorious this time," said defender Jonas Busam to DFB.de.
Revenge for two defeats in October
Spain defeated Germany in two friendlies (1-0 and 2-0) back in October 2014. Things were different back then though. "Spain were already well-practiced and used to playing together because they had to take part in the first qualifying rounds of the European Championship," explained Wück. "We didn’t have to participate in that stage and were still trying to figure out our best side, formation and approaches. The squad is completely different now."
As well as having a different line-up to half a year ago, the German U17s will have a different approach and attitude going into the game. "Those matches were a wake-up call for my team. We discovered where we needed to improve. We’ve now dealt with these weaknesses."
Clash between two evenly matched teams
The fans can expect a battle between two evenly matched sides. It would appear that Germany have the advantage going into the game given both team’s performances in the competition so far. Christian Wück’s side took nine points, scoring nine goals and conceding none. On the other hand, a 1-1 draw with Austria and a narrow 2-1 win against hosts Bulgaria meant that Spain required a point against group leaders Croatia in their final game to secure passage. The last group game finished goalless.
Spain haven’t scored any goals from open play so far at the tournament. Two free kicks and a penalty were enough to secure second place in Group A and a place in the quarterfinals.
The other quarterfinals see Belgium take on Croatia (today, 15:00 CEST), France meet Italy (16th May, 18:00 CEST) and England face Russia (16th May, 15:00 CEST). If Germany come out on top today, they will face the winner of the England-Russia match in the semifinals. The losers in both ties will come up against each other in the World Cup play-offs. Six European sides will qualify for the upcoming tournament in Chile (17th October – 8th November). Securing a World Cup berth is the minimum Christian Wück is expecting his side to achieve in the European Championship.
