Germany served notice of their return to top form and their potential as Euro 2024 winners on home soil, with a thumping 5-1 win over Scotland.
Florian Wirtz scored inside ten minutes but it was Jamal Musiala who stole the show, scoring the second and being heavily involved throughout for the hosts. The Scots’ night took a turn for the worse when Ryan Porteous was shown a straight red card for an awful challenge on Ilkay Gundogan, with Kai Havertz netting the resulting penalty - all before half time.
Niclas Fullkrug scored an absolute blockbuster off the bench before netting another which was ruled offside, before the Scots got a consolation courtesy of an Antonio Rudiger own goal.
The late goal gave Scotland’s travelling army something to sing about - even if only in humorous fashion - but Steve Clarke will know they have to improve significantly if they’re to get through the group stage as even that small smile was soon wiped off by Emre Can’s late fifth.
Here are the player ratings from the opening match of the European Championship:
Germany
Manuel Neuer, 6. Didn’t see the ball until about the 33rd minute. Surely the easiest night of his year until his own teammate nodded one past him.
Joshua Kimmich, 7. A couple of delicious deliveries from wide, even if it wasn’t his most influential game.
Antonio Rudiger, 6. Very much untroubled by any rare attacking forays. A couple of largely pointless shots from range of his own, so he tried the other way...and headed one past his own ‘keeper.
Jonathan Tah, 6. Made too many clumsy challenges and was late on a few - got himself a booking after the hour mark. Will need to be more reliable to stay in place as the tournament progresses.
Maximilian Mittelstadt, 8. Got forward more often than Kimmich and frequently to good effect. Some clever low passes mixed in with deeper deliveries finding their mark, while his change of pace also kept Scotland pinned back.
Toni Kroos, 8. Played the game at his own pace, on a quality plane nobody else could reach. Why is he retiring again? Man marked by Christie at times and just shrugged him off.
Robert Andrich, 6. Went through a few unnecessary challenges and earned himself a booking. Has a protector role, but didn’t really need to be as aggressive when his side were clear - could be costly later. On the ball was fine without needing to be the one to unlock any doors. Subbed at the break.
Ilkay Gundogan, 8. Far too good with movement and first touch for Scotland to get close to. Thankfully escaped a bad injury in winning a penalty and almost belted in his team’s fourth. A great impact in both middle and final thirds.
Jamal Musiala, 9. Absolutely thundered in Germany’s second and thought he’d won a penalty soon after. Another whose movement was just far too clever, far too quick, for Scotland to cope with. Some magic footwork on the run; just tore at Scotland after the restart knowing they couldn’t match him. Standing ovation when he was subbed off.
Florian Wirtz, 8. Took fewer than ten minutes to serve notice of his intent this summer with a fine low strike to open the scoring. Like Musiala his dribbling pace was incredible, great balance and ability to move past challenges. Fired over at the far post when he should have scored his second. Played just over an hour and was mostly glorious.
Kai Havertz, 7. Scored one, assisted another, made all the running behind the defence and linked play superbly in a vibrant opening half. Led the line well and almost got on the end of a couple of more direct passes too.
Subs: P. Gross 7, N. Fullkrug 8, L. Sane 6, T. Muller 7, E. Can 7.
Scotland
Angus Gunn, 3. Got a hand on Florian Wirtz’s strike for Germany’s opening goal, and probably should have done better to push it off target. Couldn't do much about the other goals other than maybe Can’s.
Jack Hendry, 3. Looked out of his depth against an elite German attack.
Ryan Porteous, 1. Committed one of the worst tackles in European Championship history.
Kieran Tierney, 4. Celebrated a goal-kick won in the fourth minute which, in fairness, was a high point.
Anthony Ralston, 3. Couldn’t handle Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala, though few players would have. Booked for stopping a counter-attack.
Scott McTominay, 5. Battled away but spent much of the game chasing shadows. Not sure why he is taking free-kicks.
Callum McGregor, 4. Struggled to get near Toni Kroos, Ilkay Gundogan and company.
Andy Robertson, 4. Musiala glided by the Scotland captain on a couple of occasions.
Ryan Christie, 4. Worked hard but had some loose touches in possession.
John McGinn, 4. Tidy moments on the ball under pressure but otherwise overwhelmed in midfield.
Che Adams, 4. Ran around gamely but only had 13 touches. Not necessarily his fault. Replaced at half-time.
Subs: G. Hanley, 4; B. Gilmour 5; K. McLean, 5; S. McKenna, 5, L. Shankland n/a
