By Lukanyo Tshitshi
Germany players after last night's 5 -1 dominant win against Scotland in a Euro 2024 opening encounter at Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany. image: Getty images
Cape Town: The hosts, Germany kicked off the long-awaited 2024 Europe Championship with a positive rating, defeating Scotland 5-1 on Friday night at Allianz Arena, the home of Bayern Munich in Germany.
As the hosts, Nagelsmann's side hit the ground running, laying the groundwork for the highly anticipated encounters between European teams in the Euro 2024 campaign, which runs from June 14 to July 14, 2024.
The campaign began on Friday in southern Germany's capital city of Bavaria, Munich, with Die Mannschaft hosting Scotland under the lights of the Allianz Arena.
Die Mannschaft struck while the iron was still hot, dominating the first ten minutes of the game, slaughtering passes behind Scotland's defence line, in between the lines, and using spaces in between the line and Scotland's back four, with Real Madrid legend Toni Kroos in control of the midfield, completing 102 of 103 successful passes.
Nagelsmann's side opened the scoring of the tournament inside the first 10 minutes, with Bayer Leverkusen winger Florian Wirtz scoring from close range, and Jamal Musiala, who was named man of the match, doubled the lead minutes later.
Shortly before halftime, Ryan Porteous was sent off for an aggressive tackle on Ikay Gündogan inside Scotland's penalty box, reducing the struggling side to ten men.
The Video Assistant Referee (VAR) concurred with the referee's on-field decision to award a penalty and a red card.
Kai Havertz, the centre forward of the English-side, Arsenal stepped up and converted from the penalty spot to make it 3-0 just before halftime.
The net never fills; the only time it ends is when the referee blows his whistle. Niclas Füllkrug and Emre Can of Borussia Dortmund sealed Die Mannschaft's victory from the bench, scoring in the 68th and 93rd minutes, respectively.
Antonio Rudiger, the highly rated Real Madrid defender, handed Scotland a deceptive goal with an on-goal header, beating his own goalkeeper, Manuel Neuer.
Following a mediocre performance in the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, the German national team made some changes, including hiring a new manager, introducing new players, and re-calling Toni Kroos, who has become the spine of the team.
They are now looking to redeem themselves after being knocked out of the group stage.
The home advantage might help them reach their peak and even threaten this year's Euro-winning favourites, England and France.
Euro 2024 weekend fixtures:
SATURDAY
Hungary vs. Switzerland
Spain vs. Croatia
Italy vs. Albania
SUNDAY
Poland vs. the Netherlands
Slovenia vs. Denmark
Serbia vs. England
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