Showdown in Székesfehérvár

Germany played out a thrilling quarter-final in the U21 European Championship, and so did the Netherlands. While Germany, captained by Arne Maier, needed a penalty shootout to beat Denmark following a 2-2 draw, the Dutch knocked out France thanks to a last-second goal on the counter (2-1). Now it's time for the two sides to go head to head in Székesfehérvár, Hungary on Thursday (03/06/21, 21:00 CEST). “The game against Denmark took a lot out of us, of course, but such an intense match can also give you new energy,” says Maier, who is expecting another close game. “Now we want to take that next step into the final, no matter what the cost. But we also know that the Netherlands will be a tough nut to crack!”

Second knock-out match this week

Germany have already seen that Dutch quality up close; the two teams met in the group stage, with Lukas Nmecha scoring late on (84’) to cancel out Justin Kluivert’s opener. Maier played 82 minutes of that encounter with Dilrosun entering the pitch with 12 minutes left to play. The points won't be shared this time – only one of our Herthaner will be left standing come full-time. “It will be a great battle against Germany,” says Dilrosun, who didn't feature in the win over France. The 'Jong Oranje' are now dreaming of lifting the trophy having knocked out one of the favourites for the title. “We want to win this competition, that is our shared goal – and I obviously hope that I can help the team,” says our number 16.