Leon Goretzka had to miss Germany’s first game of Euro 2020 against France, but the Bayern midfielder returned from a six-week injury layoff due a muscle strain to feature in Saturday’s win over Portugal. “I’m motivated to the core. I feel top fit and the tournament can now really get going for me. I’m ready to really go at it,” the 26-year-old said at Germany’s press conference on Monday.
Goretzka is an option to start for Germany in their crucial final group game against Hungary (1 point) on Wednesday (9pm CEST). A win would see Die Mannschaft (3 points) through to the knockout stage, but a draw or a loss would leave them dependent on the result between France (4 points) and Portugal (3 points), which is being played at the same time in Budapest. As the Bayern man stressed, it won’t be an easy job. “We’ve got by far the toughest group, including Hungary. They’ve put in amazing performances in both games and defend with real passion. We’re highly motivated, will analyse them and hopefully find solutions for how we can break them down. We want to win our game.”
Müller a doubt
It’s still not clear whether Thomas Müller will be able to feature in this key fixture at the Allianz Arena. The Bayern forward suffered a capsule injury to his knee in the Portugal game. It could well be Goretzka who replaces him: “I’m ready to help the team. I hope for all of us that Thomas is fit, because he’s an important player for us, but I back myself in the position.” Goretzka showed what he could bring to the team after he came off the bench against Portugal and shortly after struck the crossbar from the edge of the box.
“Of course, I would‘ve liked a goal, but there will be situations in the tournament when we really need a goal. I hope I’ve saved it for that moment,“ FCB’s new No8 said. Goretzka is full of confidence as ever, and with him Germany have a great asset going into their final group game against Hungary.
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