Germany lost their unbeaten run under coach Hansi Flick and received a blow in their preparations for the World Cup with a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Hungary in Leipzig. It was a disappointing display from an attacking point of view leaving many questions to be answered. The two camps have both reacted to the match.
Germany
Hansi Flick: “This defeat will not throw us off track. We know what is required of us now and this has opened our eyes a bit. It’s better to lose now rather than at the World Cup. Our first half was really poor.
“We didn’t do enough, played without confidence and made too many basic errors. It was a lot better after the break, though we failed to create enough chances.
Jonas Hofmann: “We weren’t at it in the first half. We tried to play more quickly after the break and were more dominant, but we didn’t create any real clear-cut chances. We were missing that final pass or cross in the final third and never had a clear shot on goal in the box.
“We have the quality to create chances, tonight just wasn’t good enough. This defeat will not be the end of the world for us, of course it’s frustrating tonight, but we won’t let it get us down.”
Joshua Kimmich: “We were really poor in the first half and made too many mistakes. Hungary defended well, but we knew they would, so tonight was really disappointing. We can and must do better against England.”
Thomas Müller: “The first half was really disappointing. A lot of us are having a tough time in club football right now and we didn’t play as well as we can. We had the desire to go top of the group and we still played as a team, even when things weren’t going so well.
“Hungary aren’t a small name like some people think. We couldn’t turn the game around in the second half, despite playing better. Unfortunately, we couldn’t get an equaliser for the fans and there’s not much more to add really.”
Hungary
Marco Rossi (Hungary coach): “We did a great job in the first half and then in the second half we were cornered by the Germans and had to defend very deep, even as the players tired. Ádám Szalai did a great defensive job; he occupied Kimmich for fifty minutes so that the German couldn’t put us in difficult situations with dangerous passes, and thanks to that, we were also able to conserve our strength more.
“With Ádám, exactly what I hoped for happened before the match. I told the players that the last two matches will remain in their memories for ever, so I want them to remember these matches for the right reasons. His goal here against Germany has made this farewell even more magnificent. Ádám is a player who, during his career, has been held in much higher esteem abroad than in Hungary.
“He deserves all the praise possible for his performance today – in addition to his goal, he did an amazing defensive job and sacrificed a lot for the sake of success.”
Adam Szalai: “I am proud that I managed to play as a father and that I was able to score a goal as a father. We have another very important match ahead of us, and we want to go even higher. It will be very difficult, but with the same work we will have a chance to have another big night.
“Maybe I started a little too early [his run for the goal/ rehearsed corner], but I was lucky that the ball came very short, so I just had to hit it.”
Peter Gulacsi: “I’ve been here in Leipzig for seven years, so this match was even more special. Our goal was clearly to win. In the first half, we gave a very mature, thoughtful, good performance, with a lot of attacking and pressing. We threw ourselves into every shot. We fully deserved the lead in the first half.
“We knew that in the second half they would come at us, they would squeeze us. We didn’t want to open up that much. Maybe we could have defended a little higher, but obviously when the opponent has so much quality, it is not easy to stay up. Regardless, we blocked well, blocked the passing lanes, pushed them out, and they didn’t really have any opportunities. We had two or three counterattacks that could have decided the match, but a one-goal victory is still nice.”
Dominik Szoboszlai: “I didn’t think we would take the lead so quickly. We went onto the pitch with nothing to lose, but if we’ve come this far and are first in the group, then let’s take it all the way. With the goal, after the pass, I saw the ball fly from the side, I just said, ‘Please, let it land in front of the goal post and don’t go out behind it’. It went in and I said that this is amazing, this is only in a fairy tale. Ádám announced that he will stop playing for the national team, so this goal is quite a joy for him, but also for the team.
“I was honoured that he gave me the captain’s armband when he was replaced. If it stays on me in the later matches, then I will try to carry on what Balázs Dzudzsák started and Ádám carried on.”
