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With Germany set to lock horns with Gareth Southgate’s England, excitement and anxiety are building up among supporters of both parties. Even though they made it to the Round of 16, both teams failed to put forth solid performances in the group stage. Here we have Jamal Musiala, the Bayern Munich whiz kid and a former representative of the Three Lions, discussing his return to England.
Musiala played alongside Jude Bellingham for England’s youth side not so long ago and has a very close relationship with the Dortmund player. He talked about them coming up against each other on Tuesday at Wembley. Musiala said:
“I have spoken to Jude Bellingham about it. It’s cool that we’ve ended up playing them. I’m excited to see what happens. It will no doubt be a very tough game against a top side. He said that we’ll see each other and swap kits after the game. It will be nice to see him again. It’s been a few years since we played together for England. We even played against Germany, and now we’re coming up against each other at a major tournament.”
18 - Aged 18 years and 117 days, Jamal Musiala became the youngest ever player to make an appearance for the German national team at a major tournament (World Cup & Euros). Premature. #EURO2020 #GER #GERHUN pic.twitter.com/DAwYah4ZJV
— OptaFranz (@OptaFranz) June 23, 2021
Musiala is Die Mannschaft’s youngest player ever to appear in a major tournament but that does not flatter him much. He said, “It is something special, but it doesn’t have any effect on my character or mind set. I always try to give my all. A record like that is nice in the moment, but you soon move on – that’s what you have to do.”
England haven’t been able to win against Germany in a major tournament knockout game since 1966 and therefore consider the Germans to be one of their biggest rivals. Musiala is looking forward to keep the winning streak alive and to book a berth in the quarter finals: “I’m of course aware there is a rivalry that goes back a long way. I still remember it being a big deal in England whenever they played Germany. I’m looking forward to the next one now. For me personally, it’s just about winning the game and reaching the next round.”
(Quotes via @iMiaSanMia on Twitter)