Due to a dramatic series of four matches without a win, the pressure was on German national team coach Hansi Flick. The start of the training match didn’t make him sit any quieter in his seat. Just twelve minutes later, Japan were 0-1 at the Volkswagen Arena through Junya Ito, with the discontent clearly audible.
Eight minutes after the opening goal, Leroy Sane equalized, but Flick and the German fans were unable to enjoy it for long. Feyenoord striker Ueda was in just the right place three minutes later to make it 1-2.
The German team performed poorly throughout the match and only scored two goals on goal. Takuma Asano and Ao Tanaka signed 1-3 and 1-4 in the final stage. After this goal, Wolfsburg Stadium became empty of disappointed fans.
The defeat left Flick reeling even more. The former Bayern Munich coach has been under fire since the disappointing World Cup, where the Germans were knocked out in the group stage. The team will not play any qualifying matches this year, because Germany, as the organizing country, is already certain of participating in the European Championship.
In the training match between Mexico and Australia, Jimenez missed a penalty kick in the second half. The Mexicans were trailing 0-1 at that moment. Matthew Ryan of Arizona was in the Australian goal and saw Jimenez’s shot hit the post. The match eventually ended 2-2.
Pepe scored a goal in the United States’ 3-0 win in a friendly match against Uzbekistan. The PSV Eindhoven striker scored the second goal as a substitute in stoppage time. In addition to Pepe, team mates Serginho Dest and Malek Tieleman have also played for the United States.
The Netherlands is currently working on qualifying for the European Championship for next year’s tournament in Germany. National coach Ronald Koeman’s team will begin their visit to Ireland on Sunday at 8.45pm.
