In the second group C match, the national teams of Germany and Poland, who had both won in the first round, clashed. Our neighbors had already managed to defeat the Germans in the qualifying cycle, so tough matches were expected. They were indeed close, but disappointing in that there were few dangerous opportunities. Team lineups: Germany: M. Neuer; J. Hector, B. Howedes, M. Hummels, J. Boateng; S. Khedira, M. Ozil, J. Draxler (72' M. Gomez), T. Muller, T. Kroos; M. Gotze (66' A. Schurrle). Poland: L. Fabianski; M. Pazdan, A. Jedrzejczyk, K. Glik, L. Piszczek; K. Maczynski (76' T. Jodlowiec), G. Krychowiak, K. Grosicki (87' S. Peszko), J. Blaszczykowski (80' B. Kapustka); R. Lewandowski, A. Milik. The fans gathered at the stadium were also in a completely different mood:
We're not done yet. #GERPOL is the last game of the day! We can't wait...#EURO2016 pic.com/JuSZxaXXYZ
— UEFA EURO 2016 (@UEFAEURO) June 16, 2016
The battle on the field heated up right from the start of the match – Sami Khedira, stopping the quick Polish attack, received a yellow card in the fourth minute. As usual for this tournament, the standout players in the first half were defenders. Neither team's players managed to create particularly dangerous opportunities. So the first 45 minutes unfolded in such a way that the majority of the match took place in the midfield. In the second half, the Polish players started much more actively, and Arkadiusz Milik had a chance to score as early as the first minute. However, after a brilliant pass from Kamil Grosicki, he did not hit the ball with his head. Immediately after that, on the other side of the field, Lukasz Fabianski tested his reflexes with a decent shot from Mario Gotze. With a fairly good idea, the Poles earned a penalty kick – the entire German defense expected Robert Lewandowski's shot, but he pushed the ball towards Milik, who missed the goal completely. Later, thanks to Grosicki, another chance fell to Milik's feet, but he again failed to hit the ball properly, and just a few moments later Mesut Ozil dangerously attacked. Without major incidents in either penalty area, the match ended. The goalless draw means that Ukraine no longer has a chance to advance. Result: Germany 0 - 0 Poland
The best player of the match was defender Jerome Boateng:
#GER defender @JB17Official is the @carlsberg Man of the Match #EURO2016 #GERPOL pic.com/2qvnyZYsK0
— UEFA EURO 2016 (@UEFAEURO) June 16, 2016
In the final third of the game, the Germans could not boast of high accuracy in their passes:
FT #GER 0-0 #POL Germany managed to colour the pitch with their passes. pic.com/kKucGyYpZx
— Stats Zone (@StatsZone) June 16, 2016
