Euro 2020: Germany's Mats Hummels own goal gets France off to winning start
Updated On: 16 June, 2021 07:29 AM IST | Munich | AFP
It was a heartbreaking night for Hummels, back to boost the German defence after a two-year exile from international football. Seven years ago, it was Hummels` headed goal which knocked France out of the 2014 World Cup in the quarter-finals as Germany went on to win the title in Brazil.
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Germany`s defender Mats Hummels (L) deflects the ball to score past Germany`s goalkeeper Manuel Neuer for the first goal during the UEFA EURO 2020 Group F football match between France and Germany at the Allianz Arena in Munich. Pic/AFP
A Mats Hummels own goal was enough to hand France a 1-0 victory over Germany on Tuesday as the world champions made a winning start to their Euro 2020 campaign by controlling the game in Munich. Hummels turned the ball into his own net in the 20th minute, which ultimately decided the contest. France also saw Kylian Mbappe and Karim Benzema have second-half goals ruled offside, while Adrien Rabiot hit the post for Les Bleus. `
"It was a clash that could have been a semi-final or a final, so to take three points was important," said France coach Didier Deschamps. "We played a big game against a very good German team, but we were up to the level and this victory does us good." The result leaves France second on goal difference in the early Group F table behind Portugal, after the holders` 3-0 win over Hungary earlier in Budapest. The home defeat piles the pressure on Germany ahead of their next game against Cristiano Ronaldo`s Portugal on Saturday, also at the Allianz Arena. "It was a brutally intense game," said Germany head coach Joachim Loew. "We fought until the end and I can`t blame the team, we gave it everything we had. "What was missing was a bit of penetrating power in the final third. We didn`t do enough there." He refused to blame Hummels for the own goal, saying: "There is no need to reproach Mats for the own goal. It was difficult for him to clear." Loew, who will stand down after the European Championship, is desperate to avoid a repeat of the 2018 World Cup when Die Mannschaft suffered the humiliation of finishing bottom of their group.
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