Related items

• 'Supercharged' Germany have big ambitions – Nagelsmann

  Julian Nagelsmann hailed Germany's first-half display against the Netherlands as their best performance of 2024.

  And Nagelsmann said his "supercharged" team have big ambitions after Monday's 1-0 win in Munich, which came a year to the day since he took charge of his first game—a 3-1 friendly win over the United States.

  Germany are unbeaten in the Nations League after four games, and sit five points clear at the top of their group.

  The Dutch did not manage a single shot in the first half, with Germany having eight themselves, albeit Nagelsmann's team had to wait until the 64th minute to make the breakthrough as Jamie Leweling marked his senior bow with the decisive goal.

  "The first half tonight was the best we’ve played this year," said Nagelsmann.

  "The greed that the team embodied was a huge step [forward].

  "We did well and let very little in. We absolutely deserved to win.

  "We've got the ambition to keep going. There's a supercharged atmosphere in the dressing room—they want to win."

  An ecstatic Leweling told ZDF network: "We won as a team, I scored the 1-0, we won 1-0, but we did well and I'm just happy I could help out.

  "The Dutch are a top nation, but we played a good game."

  Leweling is the first debutant under Nagelsmann to score in his first appearance for Germany. Niclas Fullkrug was the last player to net on his senior debut, in 2022.

  At the other end of the pitch, Nagelsmann handed a debut to goalkeeper Oliver Baumann.

  Aged 34 years and 131 days, Baumann is the second-oldest Germany debutant (after Matthias Mauritz) in the post-war era and the oldest goalkeeper to make his debut for the national team.

  Not that Baumann had much to do. Indeed, he had only one save to make, with the Netherlands mustering only one attempt on target and a meagre 0.13 expected goals.

• Koeman fumes after coming up short in 'all facets of football' against Germany

  Ronald Koeman believed his Netherlands side fell short in "all facets of football" after they slumped to a 1-0 defeat to Germany in the Nations League on Monday.

  Jamie Leweling netted the only goal of the encounter at the Allianz Arena, marking his senior international debut in style to put his nation on the brink of qualification. 

  The Netherlands struggled during the contest, ending the game with an expected goals (xG) total of just 0.13, with Donyell Malen's 89th minute effort their only attempt on target.

  Koeman's side also managed just eight touches in the opposition box compared to Germany's 26, despite edging the possession at the full-time whistle. 

  "If you go back too far, you bring that on yourself," Koeman said.

  "We came up short on all sides, perhaps in all facets of football. We did things differently at half-time and then we got a bit more rest. But they were much better today.

  "I am not satisfied by our performance. The Germans were the better, faster and physically stronger. They created more chances.

  "We lost too many balls in the midfield. We went too far back. That was not the plan. The plan was to put pressure forward on the right side. But it did not happen."

  The result leaves the Netherlands in second in Group A3, level on points with Hungary after Dominik Szoboszlai's double handed them a 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina. 

  Stand-in captain Stefan de Vrij echoed Koeman's thoughts after the encounter, saying his side deserved to lose against Germany.

  "It seems clear to me that it was a deserved defeat," said De Vrij.

  "The first half was very mediocre. We were very sloppy and gave away a number of balls just like that, which allowed them to become dangerous.

  "In the second half it was a bit better, but it's hard to create chances."

  The Lazio defender took the armband in place of Virgil van Dijk, who was suspended following his red card against Hungary.

  Though the Netherlands did not do enough in attack, De Vrij said that Van Dijk's absence from the team had an impact. 

  "Yes, of course you miss him. He's a very important player and he's our captain. And he's a great defender, so it makes sense that he's missed," De Vrij concluded.

• Germany 1-0 Netherlands: Leweling marks senior debut with winning goal

  Jamie Leweling netted the winner on his senior international debut as Germany beat the Netherlands 1-0 in Monday's Nations League clash at the Allianz Arena.

  The Stuttgart forward, in for the injured Deniz Undav, had a goal within two minutes of his first cap ruled out after a VAR check showed Serge Gnabry was offside in the build-up.

  However, there was no denying Leweling in the 64th minute as the 23-year-old thumped a loose ball inside the box into the bottom corner past Bart Verbruggen to give the hosts a deserved lead in Munich.

  Verbruggen had undoubtedly been the busier of the two goalkeepers up until that point, making four saves prior to the breakthrough from Leweling, who also had a goal-bound shot blocked near the line by Stefan de Vrij.

  The Netherlands twice went close to equalising in the final 15 minutes, but Oliver Baumann got a faint touch to a long-range Xavi Simons drive to help it onto the crossbar and then superbly helped Donyell Malen's powerful effort wide.

  The win moves Germany to 10 points from their first four Group A3 matches, five points clear of the Netherlands and Hungary - 2-0 winners away at Bosnia-Herzegovina - who each have five points with two games remaining.

  Data Debrief: Debutants decide the game

  Leweling was a threat throughout on his debut as he scored one, had another disallowed and had an effort blocked off the line, generating an expected goals (xG) value of 0.35 - the highest of any player on the field.

  Just as key to the victory was fellow Germany debutant Baumann, who produced two big saves in the second half. 

  Aged 34 years and 131 days, he became the second-oldest Germany debutant (after Matthias Mauritz) in the post-war era and the oldest goalkeeper to make his debut in the country's history.