Germany will be looking to repeat their 2009 success in Sweden in this year’s European Under-21 Championship, and are one of the front-runners to lift the trophy in Prague on June 30.
Having failed to qualify in Denmark four years ago and also unable to make it past the group stages in Israel, coach Horst Hrubesch will be expected to get the best out of some talented names he has at his disposal.
Route to the Finals
The route to the finals began with a gruelling ten-game process for the Germans to make their third tournament in four attempts.
They had been drawn in a qualifying group featuring the likes of Romania, Republic of Ireland and Montenegro, while Faroe Islands served as the group’s whipping boys.
With only one team progressing to the next stage, Germany needed to be on song right from the off, and Hrubesch’s men made light work of their group – winning all four matches at home (including an 8-0 victory versus Romania) – thus ending the group stage top and unbeaten.
A playoff round was the prize for topping Group 6 and only Ukraine were standing in their way.
It was a straightforward result at the KP Tcentrainyi Stadium, finishing 3-0 with Philipp Hofmann finding the scoresheet alongside Kevin Volland and Jonas Hofmann.
A 2-0 win at the Stadion Essen meant that the Germans would be represented at the 2015 European U-21 Championships.
Past Record
This time around, Hrubesch has had to prepare for a tough group that features hosts Czech Republic alongside Serbia and Denmark.
Since clinching victory in 2009’s edition of the tournament, Germany have endured two underwhelming campaigns, and must be looking at improvements this time around.
Prior to 2009’s anomaly, Germany had never even reached the semi-final stage of the competition before, overseeing multiple failures which led back even into the West Germany years.
Germany lost two out of their three group games in the 2013 competition, losing to Netherlands and Spain, two nations who are not even competing in this summer’s tournament.
Key Player
Kevin Volland is the key man for Germany should they attempt to win their first title since 2009.
The 22-year-old has scored 9 goals for Die Mannschaft since starting out for the U-21 side back in 2009.
He has since made three appearances for the senior team, but he is not Joachim Low’s main man for now, with Hrubesch hoping to be the coach to guide him to more goals in Prague.
Elsewhere, Barcelona goalkeeper and recently crowned UEFA Champions League winner Marc Andre ter Stegen is the chosen man between the sticks – conceding only five goals across the ten-game qualification period, providing a big debate in regards to who is Germany’s biggest star.
The Coach
The return of Horst Hrubesch should breathe new life into Die Mannshaft, following their terrible 2011 tournament under Rainer Adrion, finishing 3rd in their Group and with Mats Hummels saying that they “were all speechless.”
Many hand the disappointing time under Adrion due to injuries, as well as missing some key players that were subsequently called up to Joachim Low’s men’s team.
Hrubesch’s attacking style, ability to switch tactics on the field almost instantly and knowledge of the German youth sides will be vital for the competition.
Choosing Ter Stegen as the trusted goalkeeper was a tough choice for Hrubesch, as he had to leave out Marius Muller who had impressed with FC Kaiserslautern, commenting “with such a strong squad you are spoiled for choice.”
