Match Preview: Germany V Spain

The second semi final takes place on Wednesday 23rd July between Germany and Spain, with the winner taking the final spot in the final. The game kicks off at 8pm BST and can be watched on BBC One. 

📸via news.cgtn.com

Spain hope to get their hands on the Euros title for the first time, while Germany aim to reinstate their former dominance in this competition. 

Spain have been a formidable force in the Euros so far, with them winning all four games so far. Each win has been a dominant performance, with the Spaniards scoring (on average) four goals per game. Their top scorer is Esther González who is on four goals, just ahead of Alexia Putellas on three goals. These two attackers are a threat to goal and will have to be marked out of the game to prevent any goals or assists from them, with Putellas also having four assists so far. As well as this, Germany will have to be cautious of Claudia Pina, who is on fire this tournament  and a threat from outside of the box. With both of Pina’s goals coming from outside the box, Germany will have to close her down before she releases her shot, as she is a very dangerous player when given space. Not only do Spain have very strong attackers, but their defence is also hard to break down, with them only conceding three goals. This shows that Spain are very strong all around the pitch, however creative and quick play can bypass the strong Spanish defence.

Germany on the other hand started this tournament well, but their form has started to fade, with a 4-1 loss against Sweden in the group stage and an early red card in the quarter final. Although, the red card showed Germany’s grit and determination, with the team playing 100 minutes of football with ten players against a top team France, and still coming away with a win on penalties. Germany have three players on two goals each, which shows that there is attacking firepower across the German team that could cause Spain some problems - specifically Julie Brand who is on two assists and two goals in this tournament. Unfortunately for Germany, an ankle injury from Linder against France means that they will be without her in the semi final. Luckily for Germany, Wamser will be back from her red card suspension so should be able to fill in in the right back position. 

Germany will be going into this game confident, knowing that they haven’t lost to Spain in their last five meetings with them, however Spain will also be confident knowing that they have lost in nine matches. 

Previous meetings between the two teams have resulted in three wins for Germany and two draws, with the most recent result in the 2024 Olympics being a 1-0 win to Germany. Although Germany walked away with the win, Spain were on top with 68% possession and double the amount of shots that Germany had, with Germany’s winning goal coming from a penalty. This match shows that there’s not much to separate these top two teams, and this is also represented in the FIFA world rankings with Spain 2nd and Germany 3rd. 

This game has all of the potential to go to extra time and possibly penalties and is setting up to be an exciting game which you can watch at 8pm BST on BBC One.