😱 Cucurella déjà vu as Germany’s small-sided national team narrowly beaten | OneFootball

After the 0:3 opening defeat against the strong Ukrainians, everything was on the line for Germany in their second match of the SOCCA World Championship. The opponent was Spain, who had lost their first match 1:2 against Colombia.

The German team started the match very well and played courageously. A clear improvement compared to the first game was noticeable.

Cekic stood out, having come straight from the last Icon League matchday—where he had just led DNA Athletics into the top 3—and now stood on the pitch in Mexico. With his dribbling and unpredictability, he brought a new element to the German game and repeatedly created danger.

In the 13th minute, the German team rewarded themselves. Metidji played the ball out to the right, just in front of the Spanish goalkeeper, to Yilmaz, who only had to tap it in.

With this 1:0 lead, the teams went into halftime. A clear improvement was evident, and the Spaniards repeatedly had defensive difficulties.

The second half became more open, and the DKFV squad increasingly fell back into old patterns. In the 26th minute, Spain equalized. Betz, who had pushed up high, played a ball towards the far post. The Spaniards intercepted it and finished into the empty net.

Two minutes later, Spain struck again. A low free kick from just before the halfway line found its way through Betz's legs into the goal. "Two goals against you that simply shouldn't happen," emphasized small-field legend Kim Sippel.

But the German team didn't give up and fought their way back into the game. After an assist from Chandra, Fries artistically back-heeled the ball into the corner—the equalizer four minutes before the end.

Wild Final Phase

In the 38th minute, the referees were in the spotlight for the first time. Chandra touched a Spaniard's face with his hand while running. The Spaniard went down theatrically, and Chandra received a yellow card. An overly harsh decision, which resulted in a two-minute period of being a man down.

With one man less, the goal was clear: hold on to the draw until the end.

But in the last minute, there were flashbacks to the European Championship quarterfinal against Spain—only this time the other way around and with a penalty. Haitz blocked a shot in Cucurella fashion, and the referees rightly awarded a penalty.

For this penalty, the attacker has ten seconds to score in a one-on-one against the goalkeeper.

Andress took the stage just for this penalty; he had already proven himself as a penalty killer in the Socca Champions League and in recent friendlies.

And indeed! The 17-year-old saved the penalty, and even the rebound went wide. Huge celebrations among the Germans, but suddenly the referee blew the whistle, and VAR intervened. Apparently, Wurm had entered the half before the ten seconds were up, which is forbidden.

After a four-minute review, the referees awarded a technical goal to Spain—a rule-compliant interpretation that raises questions.

A saved penalty leads to a goal, just because a player enters the half without influencing the play. Such a rule is completely incomprehensible and massively damages the image of small-field football.

For the German team, the remaining time was all about overcoming the 2:3 deficit. But despite the long interruptions, the referees ended the match 40 seconds later. A bitter defeat for the German team, who, despite two losses, are not yet definitely out.

Is the Round of 16 Still Possible?

Yes, it is! But not by their own efforts anymore. The German team must hope for a Ukrainian win against Spain and must win themselves against Colombia. Additionally, they need to improve their goal difference from -4, as they need a better one than Spain (currently 0).

The decision will be made tonight. At 00:00, Ukraine faces Spain, and immediately after at 01:00, Germany plays against Colombia.

You can watch the German match live and for free on Twitch.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.

📸 THOMAS KIENZLE - AFP or licensors