The evening started with a weather warning: a stubborn storm was approaching, delaying the start to the game and perhaps also delaying the goals.
This was supposed to be night.
Not only did the Germany captain make his 100th appearance with the national team. He also assisted the first goal of the match and did so at his home stadium, Bayern Munich’s Allianz Arena.
But opponents Portugal had other plans and ended up stealing the show with a 2-1 away win to reach the Nations League final, putting another dent to Germany’s hopes of resurgence.
100th game but not at 100 percent
“We need to understand that if we are not at 100 percent, it’s difficult against any opponent,” said Kimmich after the match, referring to Germany missing key players such as and due to injuries.
After a cagey first half, it was Kimmich who provided a lobbed pass to Florian Wirtz to score Germany’s first goal in the 48th minute.
“Even after we went 1-0 up, it didn’t appear to me like we wanted to reach the final,” said Kimmich
“We need to be honest with ourselves, we were not active enough on the ball and also without it. We didn’t bring the energy on the pitch and therefore we deserved to lose,” he added.
Despite the defeat, Kimmich believes the team is “more consolidated than we were a year and a half ago” and he is more than familiar with the current situation.
Kimmich began his international career back in 2016, just two years after Germany’s triumph in Brazil. While he lifted the now-defunct Confederations Cup in 2017 with the national team, Germany have experienced multiple disappointing tournaments ever since.
The 30-year-old Is the 14th player to reach 100 caps with Germany men’s national team. But he’s the only German player with over 100 appearances who has not won a World Cup.
“I’ve experienced many highs and lows with the Germany national team,” had said Kimmich earlier in the week.
“Of course, you always have the goal of winning a title in mind. We go into every tournament, especially as Germany, to compete for the title,” said Kimmich.
But Kimmich and Germany will have to wait longer to end their trophy drought.
Dueling captains
While this had been the captain’s 100th match wearing the Germany shirt, , Portugal’s captain, eclipsed the German’s milestone by playing his 220th game for his nation.
“Congratulations to Kimmich. He’s played 100 games, it’s a landmark, it’s amazing,” said Portugal coach Roberto Martinez after the match.
“But when you’re talking about a player like Cristiano Ronaldo, he’s got over double that. It’s difficult to put into words,” said Martinez
In fact, it was the 40-year-old who would put an end to a drought.
Ronaldo had lost all five of his previous meetings against Germany but it was the Portuguese captain who would score the winning goal in the 68th minute, just 5 minutes after Francisco Conceicao had tied the match with a stunning curling shot.
Ronaldo is used to being in the spotlight. As soon as his name was announced, the stadium exploded in cheers and jeers. Naturally the cheers came from the away supporters and jeers from the home fans.
But it’s the jeers where Ronaldo appears to thrive in the most.
Ronaldo had missed a few chances earlier in the game, sparking boos and whistles from the home crowd. The loud sounds turned into silence once he scored, turning the game around. His goal against Germany was his 137th for Portugal, a record-most in international football.
“It’s human, when you win, the next day you have less hunger. But that’s not the case with Cristiano,” said Martinez.
The striker played almost the whole match and was only substituted in the 90th minute to receive the applause of the away crowd as he leads his country to another Nations League final.
With Ronaldo off the pitch, Germany desperately pushed for a last-minute equalizer with a counter-attack. But it was Kimmich who missed a crucial pass bringing the home crowd to a sigh.
The special night which was meant to honor the Germany captain turned into another night of praise for Cristiano Ronaldo.
Edited by: Zac Crellin
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