Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: Italy fought back from three goals down, but Germany’s dominant first half was enough to see them through 3-3 on March 23 and 5-4 on aggregate, booking their place in the semifinals of the UEFA Nations League. After having won the first leg 2-1, Julian Nagelsmann’s side immediately took control of the game.
Early efforts from Leon Goretzka, Maximilian Mittelstadt and Jamal Musiala set the tone before Leroy Sane tested Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma with a low shot on 27 minutes, reports Xinhua.
The breakthrough came three minutes later when Tim Kleindienst was brought down in the area after a neat move and Joshua Kimmich stepped up to calmly send Donnarumma the wrong way and double Germany’s aggregate lead.
Germany struck again just five minutes later. Donnarumma kept out Kleindienst’s close-range header but had no answer when Musiala pounced on the ensuing corner to head home from a few meters after Kimmich’s pinpoint delivery.
The home side didn’t let up the pressure. Another flowing move saw Kimmich again playing the provider, this time with a perfectly weighted cross into the box. Kleindienst rose to meet it and flicked a header over the line to put Germany 3-0 up on the night and 5-1 ahead on aggregate.
Italy refused to go down without a fight, and Moise Kean capitalized on a defensive lapse to fire a powerful shot into the bottom corner. Mittelstadt tested Donnarumma soon after, but the momentum was beginning to shift.
The visitors continued to press and were rewarded midway through the half. Substitute Giacomo Raspadori’s precise pass found Kean, who beat his marker with a stunning finish into the top corner to make it 3-2.
Giovanni Di Lorenzo appeared to have won a penalty for contact with Nico Schlotterbeck, but VAR intervened, and the decision was overturned.
In stoppage time, a VAR decision went in Italy’s favor when a handball was spotted from a corner. Raspadori stepped up and slotted the penalty into the top corner to level the scores and put Italy within a goal of forcing extra time.
However, Germany’s defense held firm, clearing crosses and breaking Italy’s rhythm to see out the match. Despite a late scare, their dominant first-half performance proved decisive.
The result sent Germany through to the semifinals, where they will face Portugal on 4 June, with the last four to be played on home soil in Stuttgart and Munich.
“We played an unbelievable first half, but we also saw that there is still a lot of work to be done,” said Germany coach Nagelsmann.
