The first half had to be interrupted for a good 25 minutes and the teams disappeared into the changing rooms. Then the round of 16 match in Dortmund picked up speed again. Havertz scored for the Germans with a handball penalty and Musiala scored.
Jamal Musiala made the preliminary decision with the 2-0 in favor of Germany.
Thilo Schmuelgen / Reuters
Dortmund’s Westfalenstadion has a reputation for being a magical place in German football. The home team Borussia has often been given a boost by the crowd in tricky situations, and the German national team likes to come here, although it took decades for them to lose their aura of invincibility in front of the Dortmund crowd in the 2006 World Cup semi-final against Italy.
The current qualification for the European Championship quarter-finals with a 2-0 win against Denmark thanks to goals from Kai Havertz and Jamal Musiala may not make up for the knockout blow of that time, but the stadium is probably the most atmospheric setting during the entire tournament so far.
A waterfall of biblical proportions
Dortmund once again lived up to its reputation, the Germans needed some support against the Danes, who were not playing particularly well at this tournament. Neither team offered a top-class performance, but there were plenty of opportunities, so that in the end it seemed almost strange that the decisive goal came from a handball penalty converted by Havertz.
In addition, a cloudburst interrupted the match in the first half – no ordinary thunderstorm, but a waterfall of biblical proportions. The water cascaded down from the stadium roof so that one could have imagined either waterfalls or geysers. But the spectacle was over quickly enough for the match to be finished that evening, even if the German fans were not irritated by the enforced break and sang the hit song “Oh, how beautiful it is”.
When the game restarted after a 25-minute break, the Danes were the ones who benefited, as they came dangerously close to the opponent’s goal several times. First, Dortmund’s Nico Schlotterbeck made a spectacular mistake when he tried to dribble past an opponent in his own penalty area, but lost the ball. Shortly afterwards, goalkeeper Manuel Neuer thwarted a great chance for the Danes when he cleverly narrowed the angle from close range.
Danish goal disallowed – in return there is a penalty for Germany
It was not to be the only thing the Danes did: after the half-time whistle, they scored a goal through former Dortmund player Delaney, which was disallowed due to a very narrow offside position. But Andersen quickly used his hand in his own penalty area. The German captain Ilkay Gündogan was provoked by Denmark’s goalkeeper Schmeichel, Havertz took the ball in Gündogan’s place and coolly converted to take the lead.
Kai Havertz scores a penalty to make it 1-0.
Imago / Eibner-Pressefoto / Memmler
Even before Jamal Musiala scored his third goal of the tournament, the Germans had great chances through Havertz and Sané. Germany’s captain Gündogan finally made way for Niclas Füllkrug. However, his first opportunity resulted from an offside situation.
In the end, the Germans dominated the Danes, which was appreciated by the fans. The fans sang the cup classic: “Berlin, Berlin, we’re going to Berlin.” That’s where the final will be played.
Germany – Denmark 2:0 (0:0).
Dortmund. – 61,612 spectators. – Referee: Oliver (ENG). – Tore: 53. Havertz (Penalty) 1-0. 68. Musiala 2-0.
Deutschland: new; Kimmich, Rüdiger, Schlotterbeck, Room (80. Henrichs); Andrich (64. Can), Kroos; Sané (88. Anton), Gündogan (64. Füllkrug), Musiala (80. Wirtz); Havertz.
Denmark: Schmeichel; Andersen, Vestergaard, Christensen (81. Bruun Larsen); Bah (82. Kristiansen), Delaney (70. Norgaard), Höjbjerg, Maehle; Skov Olsen (70. Poulsen), Höjlund (81. Wind), Eriksen.
Remarks: Germany without Tah (suspended). Denmark without Hjulmand (suspended). 48. Goal by Andersen disallowed for offside. Warnings: 57. Bah. 60. Maehle.
