Germany U21 Report Card | 5 “winners” among 14 players ranked | OneFootball

Ahead of this summer’s U21 European Championship, Antonio di Salvo’s Germany U21 squad won both of their friendlies in the March international break. The players representing Germany at the highest youth level can enter the tournament with confidence. After their disappointing group stage exit in the 2023 competition, di Salvo’s Juniors have kept up an undefeated record in 15 fixtures since.

A 0-1 win over the Slovakian U21s on Friday night and a 3-1 victory over the Spanish U21s in Darmstadt on Tuesday evening ensured that the streak would remain intact. Just as we did with Julian Nagelsmann’s senior side on Monday, Get German Football News is pleased to supply a full report card for all players who saw meaningful action. In this case, 14 German youth internationals are ranked.

There are once again five significant “winners” from within the team. VfB Stuttgart’s Nick Woltemade and Mainz 05’s Paul Nebel lead the pack with perfect marks. Borussia Mönchengladbach’s Rocco Reitz, Brighton & Hove Albion’s Brajan Gruda, and Eintracht Frankfurt’s Ansgar Knauff also attained “A-Level”. Eight players came in on the “B” and “C” categories.

Only one U21 dropped down to “D-Level” this time. Team captain Eric Martel of FC Köln will wish to put this international break behind him as quickly as possible. The 22-year-old looked off in both games. Allowing his frustration to spill over, Martel also picked up two bookings.

Nick Woltemade, VfB Stuttgart

Matches played = 2/2, Matches started = 2/2

Minutes played = 177/180,

Positions played = AM, ATTM, RW, CF

Cumulative German Press Grade = 1,5

Author’s Cumulative Grade = A+

All of the Bundesrepublik currently buzzes over its new star. Germans currently trade Woltemade’s two most popular nicknames – “The two metre tall Messi” and “The Wolverine” – heavily in footballing conversations. Woltemade’s perfect international break (an assist in the first match and a monumental hat trick in the second) leaves many wondering whether he’ll be with the German U21s at all in June.

A senior team call-up for the VfB Stuttgart sensation looks to be in the cards. Woltemade’s ability to excel as both a nine and a ten cannot be emphasized enough. The fact that a player of his size can succeed from a deeper position is anything but ordinary. The Darmstadt crowd on Tuesday night continually showered the Bremen native with applause as he executed constant flicks and tricks on the ball.

Woltemade combines the physical build of a traditional big target forward with the sublime skill of a pivot attacker. The manner in which he directed just about every German attacking charge in the second match assured all live observers that the Messi-comparison was well-deserved. Speaking to the Sat1 after Tuesday night’s victory, Woltemade noted that he would love to play in the both U21 Euros and the Nations League Finals.

Such an outcome is quite possible.

Paul Nebel, FSV Mainz 05

Matches played = 2/2, Matches started = 2/2

Minutes played = 166/180,

Positions played = RW, LW

Cumulative German Press Grade = 2,0

Author’s Cumulative Grade = A+

Mainz 05’s proud budding German star furnished excellent performances in both matches. The 22-year-old even proved himself capable in deployments on both the left and right flanks. Sharing the second axis with Woltemade and Gruda in the first match, Nebel settled well into the interplay and completed some nice combos with his teammates. His strongest phase came in the 20 minutes after the restart, during which he drove the ball into the box thrice.

Nebel’s work in the second fixture counted as truly superb. He initiated the drives that set up Woltemade’s first and second goals and could have garnered official assists on two occasions. Always alert and courageous on the press, Nebel helped his team get a few promising counters rolling. One can foresee a senior team call up for the native Hessian if he keeps up his club form down the final stretch of the season.

Brajan Gruda, Brighton & Hove Albion

Matches played = 2/2, Matches started = 2/2

Minutes played = 141/180

Positions played = RW, AM

Cumulative German Press Grade = 2,5

Author’s Cumulative Grade = A

The former Mainz man – in large part because little else happened – found himself the center of attention following the first match. Naturally, the second fixture delivered plenty of more storylines. It is such that another strong performance from the 20-year-old risks being overlooked. Gruda genuinely delivered another gem from the ten slot behind Woltemade.

Gruda would have put Germany up 2-0 in the 11th had his powerful effort off a corner not been cleared off the line. Fluidly switching positions with Woltemade, Gruda retained an impressive presence in most every DFB attack. He nearly earned two assists during the especially strong late German phase. There’s effectively only positive news to report with respect to the Speyer-native.

Rocco Reitz, Borussia Mönchengladbach

Matches played = 2/2, Matches started = 2/2

Minutes played = 119/180

Positions played = CM, RM

Cumulative German Press Grade = 2,75

Author’s Cumulative Grade = A-

One of prospect German football lovers consistently fawn over did an excellent job in both matches. Reitz stepped forward often to deliver useful balls “from the deep”. Observers sensed “Joshua Kimmich” vibes when the Gladbach man sent Woltemade in ahead of the lone goal in the first match. A clever step-over on Paul Nebel’s ball enabled Woltemade to score early in the second game.

Reitz received his own standing ovation from the Darmstadt crowd on Tuesday after what was a stellar day at the office. The 22-year-old remained sharp throughout. At no point did he display any rust from his recent injury layoff. It counts s as a tragedy that Reitz probably won’t receive a senior team call up soon. the competitive situation in Nagelsmann’s midfield simply doesn’t allow the BMG scrapper much of a chance.

Ansgar Knauff, Eintracht Frankfurt

Matches played = 2/2, Matches started = 1/2

Minutes played = 110/180, Positions played = ATTM

Cumulative German Press Grade = 3,25

Author’s Cumulative Grade = A-

Some controversy might accompany this grading as Knauff appeared rather sloppy in both his relief shift against Slovakia and his start against Spain. The former Dortmund academy man squandered many good finishing opportunities, lost the ball with some heavy touches, and wasn’t exactly the most adept at keeping himself onside. The fact that the 23-year-old displayed persistence and involved himself consistently in the attack still has merit.

Knauff picked up a direct assist on Woltemade’s second goal on Tuesday night. Some clever work with the ball saw him set up two further chances. He also narrowly missed with a pair of his own efforts. It appears as if a German youth international who has endured his fair share of criticism is refining his game accordingly. Knauff earned top level marks in this case.

Nicolo Tresoldi, Hannover 96

Matches played = 2/2, Matches started = 1/2

Minutes played = 94/180

Positions played = CF, AM

Cumulative German Press Grade = 4,25

Author’s Cumulative Grade = B

The Hannover 96 – like all of his colleagues – mostly remained missing in action throughout the first match. That isn’t to suggest that he didn’t fulfill his role. The 20-year-old held the ball up well on a couple of occasions, executed a marvelous turn in the first half, and drew coverage in some important situations. Most German press sources don’t take such intangibles into account and rate him harshly.

This analysis offers more charitable marks. In 18 minutes of relief during the Tuesday night fixture, Tresoldi slid into Brajan Gruda’s number ten role seamlessly. Dogged determination and a solid work ethic remained visible to the naked eye, even if the Italian-born striker with Argentine roots didn’t get his name on the scoresheet.

Caspar Jander, 1. FC Nürnberg

Matches played = 1/2, Matches started = 0/2

Minutes played = 45/180, Positions played = ATTM

Cumulative German Press Grade = 3,0

Author’s Cumulative Grade = B

The Nürnberg midfielder looked strong in the second half against Slovakia, flashing an ambitious effort over the bar five minutes after his introduction. As the DFB-XI passed the ball amongst their own ranks looking for the right gaps, one had the sense that the U21 debutant possessed more ideas than most of his teammates. The 22-year-old covered quite a bit of ground in midfield and often called for the ball.

Max Rosenfelder, SC Freiburg

Matches played = 2/2, Matches started = 2/2

Minutes played = 108/180

Positions played = CB

Cumulative German Press Grade = 2,75

Author’s Cumulative Grade = B-

The SC Freiburg man by far served as the strongest member of the back-four in opening half of the first match. Rosenfelder tackled away strongly throughout and cleared several dangerous situations. He remained particularly strong on aerial duels and ran the bow-arc passing out of the back calmly. Di Salvo took him off at the half due to the fact that he seemed to be fading a bit on the energy front.

Rosenfelder’s performance in the Tuesday night match effectively mirrored that of the first. Solid in all aspects of his game early on, the 22-year-old faded out sooner than most of his players. Di Salvo left him on the pitch longer on Tuesday. It still came as no surprise to see his number called as the first German sub shortly after the hour-mark. The Freiburg-native possesses some fitness issues.

Bright Arrey-Mbi, Sporting Braga

Matches played = 2/2, Matches started = 2/2

Minutes played = 180/180

Positions played = CB

Cumulative German Press Grade = 3,25

Author’s Cumulative Grade = B-

The former Bayern academy man had some timing issues with some of his tackling in both matches, yet largely kept things tight at the back. Defensive actions generally remained on the level. On the other hand, the 22-year-old shied away from longer dribbles and mostly stuck to long verticals when trying to initiate play out of the back. Despite some tepid play, one can’t find all that much fault with Arrey-Mbi’s two maximum-minute shifts.

Nnamdi Collins, Eintracht Frankfurt

Matches played = 2/2, Matches started = 2/2

Minutes played = 166/180

Positions played = RB

Cumulative German Press Grade = 3,25

Author’s Cumulative Grade = C

The highly touted Eintracht Frankfurt prospect struggled to make his presence known in both fixtures. Collins at least made some crucial defensive interventions in the first match. His runs forward nonetheless always ended in very poor crosses or wayward shots. The 21-year-old simply failed to find precision in every last case. His confidence clearly shaken, Collins remained reticent in the second match. he barely got a useful touch in at all.

Nathaniel Brown, Eintracht Frankfurt

Matches played = 2/2, Matches started = 2/2

Minutes played = 159/180

Positions played = LB

Cumulative German Press Grade = 3,25

Author’s Cumulative Grade = C

Collins’ club teammate similarly struggled with quality passes and crosses, particularly in the first match. A genuine uptick in the second fixture mattered little as Brown ended up getting stuck despite several sprints forward. Brown did defend strongly and even threaded in a quality cross for skipper Eric Martel shortly after the restart. Overall, however, the 21-year-old’s limp performance in the Friday fixture precludes his grade from being raised much.

Jamil Siebert, Fortuna Düsseldorf

Matches played = 1/2, Matches started = 0/2

Minutes played = 45/180

Positions played = CB

Cumulative German Press Grade = 3,0

Author’s Cumulative Grade = C

Brought on at half-time in the first match, the Fortuna Düsseldorf product largely remained anonymous. Di Salvo’s Juniors mostly spent the second 45 against Slovakia struggling to get out of midfield. As a result, the potential future Serie A professional didn’t accrue many meaningful touches. Ball circulation at the back mostly remained safe.

Noah Atubolu, SC Freiburg

Matches played = 2/2, Matches started = 2/2

Minutes played = 180/180

Positions played = GK

Cumulative German Press Grade = 3,25

Author’s Cumulative Grade = C-

German fans attending the Darmstadt-hosted fixture were kind enough to grace the SC Freiburg record breaker with a very special banner on Tuesday evening. In English, fans in the “Kurve section” declared the 22-year-old “the best keeper in Germany”. Bundesliga lovers have always supported the Breisgau native and remain eminently pleased that he’s traversed his fair share of adversity over the last two seasons. It all constitutes a great story.

Regarding the story, Atubolu didn’t have to many pages to add during this international break. After having not much to do during the first match, he looked rather wobbly whenever facing Spanish shots in the second. Plenty of spilled rebounds, heavy touches, and poor passing decisions out of the back led to nervy collective gasps among the Darmstadt crowd. Atubolu basically had a night begging to be forgotten.

Eric Martel, 1. FC Köln

Matches played = 2/2, Matches started = 2/2

Minutes played = 180/180,

Positions played = CM, LM

Cumulative German Press Grade = 4,25

Author’s Cumulative Grade = D

The Germany U21 captain regrettably had a rough pair of matches. The cathedral city professional talked a good game before matters got rolling, but ultimately couldn’t bring it on the pitch. Martel incurred bookings in both matches for flagrantly bad fouls, seemed sluggish and unmotivated on the pitch, and routinely blew his marks. A horrible clearance in the second match led to the Spanish U21s scoring their lone goal of the evening.

Martel actually found himself lucky to avoid getting ejected in the Tuesday night fixture as he committed another foul worthy of a booking. The 22-year-old earns the dubious honor of being the worst of all the German actors who saw meaningful playing time. Like his senior team counterpart Jonathan Tah, Martel looked consistently off while logging maximum minutes.

GGFN | Peter Weis