Germany couldn’t quite do a Spain and win a world cup and Euro back to back but they definitely bow out with their head held high. Things might have gone a bit differently if Bastian Schweinsteiger had not handled the ball and some of their chances had landed in the back of the net.
Nevertheless, they put up a good fight and France deservedly will play Portugal in the final. This might be the last tournament Schweinsteiger might play in. The United midfielder is already 31 years of age and will be 33 when he plays the World Cup in Russia.
The penalty given to France might still be something that will be questioned but the fact of the matter is, the game is done and dusted and the captain knows that. But knowing how much his country and his fans were rooting for he and his team he had to respond.
Bastian wrote a letter which was posted on German football’s official facebook page. This is what he said:
Dear fans,It’s a real shame. Our dream has not been fulfilled. We didn’t make it to the final, so Rio will not be followed by another magical night. Unfortunately, we were missing something extremely important against France: a little bit of luck. Defeats are a part of the game though, even if they hurt. We of course acknowledge our opponents’ performance and sincerely and warmly congratulate the French team on progressing to the final. I am proud of what we have achieved. We have stayed true to playing our style of football. We have continued to grow as a team in the last seven weeks and this togetherness, which made us strong in Brazil two years ago, has done the same again here in France. We are a team, we are Die Mannschaft.Our fans are also a part of it. Wherever we were, Lille, St. Denis, Paris, Bordeaux or Marseille – thanks to you we had our twelfth man by our side. Your enthusiasm was clear to hear and see in the stadiums. We also felt the support of all the people in Germany. At this point, we would like the say THANK YOU to all the fans. We would also like to thank the hosts, France and the French people. We have felt happy, safe and fully welcome from the first day. We had the best possible conditions in Evian. We were able to concentrate and train intensely, as well as relax in peace and recover where we were staying. France have been amazing hosts for the European Championship. I would like to take my hat off to France on behalf of the team.Merci! Au revoir! And see you soon!
Loew unsure of his future
Joachim Loew was gutted after losing to France last night. The manager was very vague about his future plans and whether he will remain as coach of the national team for the 2018 World Cup.
After the match, he spoke to the media about the defeat.
“I'm still disappointed so I don't want to think about that tonight. How I cope with that is difficult to answer, we haven't discussed beforehand what we would do after a loss, we will talk about that in a few days. We’ll talk about it on the flight home, but this has been a good tournament for us.”
