Low Refuses To Make Team The Scapegoat After Germany Lost Because Of An Own Goal

Joachim Low (Twitter @DFB_team_EN)

JAKARTA - Germany coach Joachim Low refused to blame his team as a factor in the 0-1 defeat to France in the Euro 2020 Group F match on Wednesday morning, even though Germany lost because one of his players scored an own goal.

Mats Hummels tried to clear the ball from France's Lucas Hernandes but the ball landed on the right side of Manuel Neuer's goal who didn't expect it and was late to block France 1-0 up from the 20th minute until the end of the game.

Goal. Needed. 😬#FRA 1-0 #GER#DieMannschaft #EURO2020 #FRAGER pic.twitter.com/9h7XVOj2fk

— Germany (@DFB_Team_EN) June 15, 2021

"It was a really tough match and we fought until the end. I can't blame my team for not trying, they did everything they could," Low said as quoted by Antara from the UEFA website on Wednesday.

Low's players have actually played like the coach's plan, even though the results were not in Germany's favor.

"I think we have realized a lot of things that we had planned for this match. I think we played a decent match and created enough chances to score," midfielder Toni Kroos told ZDF as quoted by UEFA's website.

This defeat made Germany faced with a steep road ahead, especially since the next opponent was no less strong than France, namely Portugal, who beat Hungary 3-0 on the same day.

On the other hand, for France, it was a win that extended its streak of consecutive wins in various competitions to 17 matches.

💬 Joachim #Löw: "It was a brutally intensive game. I can't fault the players' effort. They threw everything into it. We were just lacking penetration in the final third and didn't make enough of our opportunities."#DieMannschaft #GER #EURO2020 #FRAGER pic.twitter.com/l6IhhqLH2s

— Germany (@DFB_Team_EN) June 15, 2021

"We really played as a team. We were under pressure especially in the second half because they controlled the ball and took it wide. We've done the most important thing and we have to enjoy that," said France goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.

He considered his team to be very solid so they could win. "We were really solid in our last third," concluded Lloris.