EM final against England: Woltemade vertebrae before EM final-“pushed to the maximum”

Nick Woltemade strolled to the team bus deeply relaxed, wrote autographs before the European Championship final or posed for photos with children. The German U21 star was not particularly noticeable from unrest due to the change vertebrae after a rumored agreement with FC Bayern. For the 23-year-old and a promising German football generation, only one thing counts before the England final: the European Championship title.

“It will be fantastic, it will be our last game,” said Woltemade about the year, which is unbeaten in 20 games. “We’ll do everything we can to win it.” On Saturday (9:00 p.m./SAT.1) the last defeat of the U21 was exactly two years ago: On June 28, 2023, the European Championship preliminary round was 0: 2-against England.

How new, Gnabry and Wirtz?

Before the eyes of national coach Julian Nagelsmann, the selection of the German Football Association wants to take the last triumphal step – and the generations about Manuel Neuer (2009), Serge Gnabry (2017) and Florian Wirtz (2021) do the same. In addition, the U21 international can also position themselves in the Nagelsmann ensemble for a World Cup chance in the coming year. “He has one or the other on the piece,” revealed DFB sports director Rudi Völler.

Bayern vortex around Woltemade

Woltemade has already been promoted to A international in the Nations League. Due to his rapid promotion of the season and an outstanding European Championship with six goals and three honors to the player of the game, his market value continues to make up, the interest in the cup winner is huge.

Media speculate about a desired change this summer to Munich and a well -endowed five -year contract. Bayern are very benevolent about the storm giant. The Stuttgart people refer to the contract until 2028 and their plans. The poker by a replacement in the medium to high double-digit million range seems to begin.

Völler: “Many, many years later” revenge chance

U21 national trainer Antonio di Salvo, who was observed on the trip to the Slovak capital in a concentrated conversation with Woltemade, is not interested in all of this. For him and his team, it is all about the final and crowning step to the title. “We are of course also happy about goals from Nick in the final, but if you score the goals, you don’t care,” said Di Salvo. When Stefan Kuntz assisted coach, the 46-year-old cheered twice as a European champion, once became Vice. Now his greatest success is said to be boss.

Of course, a victory is always beautiful. But nothing changes in quality, “no matter how the game goes out,” said Völler. The former world-class striker, who was previously the only German was the best player of a U21 tournament, recalled the final defeat of the selection with him, Pierre Littbarski or Lothar Matthäus in 1982. “Many, many years later, we now have the chance to win against the English.”

World champion as “giant transorn”

Völler & Co. became world champion as U21 vice eight years later. The 2009 European champions about the later world champions Neuer, Jérôme Boateng or Mesut Özil followed as the epitome of a golden generation. The 2017 winners did not write a great national team story. Of the European Championship winners from 2021, DFB star Wirtz recently switched to Liverpool FC for a crazy.

“If you see who actually won the title at the time, whether it was now a new one or Hummels or what they are all called, then of course you already think so: Wow, okay, if they did it, and we can do it, then of course you can also make it onto the very big stage,” said the Cologne U21 captain Eric Martel. “Of course this is a giant transform for us.”

“Push” through Nagelsmann visit

However, the greed is even greater after the title in Bratislava. Especially when Nagelsmann watches the “National Football Stadium”. “It gives everyone a push,” said semi-final scorer Brajan Gruda from the Premier League Club Brighton & Hove Albion. “The final is a top game and we will all be completely pushed to the maximum anyway.”

Gruda and the Mönchengladbach marathon man Rocco Reitz were able to sniff in before the 2024 home European Championship. If the national coach is there, maybe “one or two or three percent more would be given again,” said Reitz before the “biggest game”.

Exciting personal details – also for the A team?

The U21 has something to offer in positions on which there have been personnel requirements in the A team in recent years. The Frankfurt full -back Nathaniel Brown and Namdi Collins advertise for themselves. Like the striking colleagues Nelson Weiper (Mainz) and Nicolo Tresoldi (soon Bruges). The Freiburg Noah Atubolu will play a role in a change of generation in the DFB goal.

In the group phase, the U21, which was changed to eleven positions, won 2-1 against England. The conclusions from the game: none. Only the certainty that another team will appear – again with the Woltemade, of course. “I think the coach should already know that he prefers to set me up,” joked the tournament star at Sat.1.