The 3-3 draw of Germany with Italy in the second stage of their quarterfinals of the Nations League was entertaining, but improvements had to be made, said head coach Julian Nagelsmann.
After he won the first stage 2-1 in Milan, Germany seemed to cruise in the semi-final of the competition after he led with three goals in the second half.
The penalty of Joshua Kimmich was succeeded with strikes from Jamal Musiala and Tim Kleindienst, but the side of Luciano Spalletti roared back after the break.
Moise Kean scored a brace and the Giacomo Raspadori level in the fifth minute of the second half of the stopping time made it interesting, but Germany held up for the victory.
The hosts had dominated the opening period and registered a expected goals (XG) a total of 3.09 of their 18 attempts, which limited Italy to three shots in the first half.
The Azzurri, however, reacted brilliant and performed better than Germany in the XG metal (1.2 to 0.32), although Nagelsmann was not disappointed by the general display.
“I like it. I always want our football to be entertaining,” Nagelsmann said in an interview after the game.
“The first half was very entertaining. It was also very interesting in the second half, just a bit too exciting at the end.
“We are a country of complainants, but we can be proud of the unity between fans and the team.
“The team gives everything. This is perhaps the most important development in recent years.”
Nagelsmann described the first half as “very impressive” and the best Germany played during his term of office.
“The big difference was that in the second half we played almost exclusively backwards and almost exclusively through the middle,” said Nagelsmann.
“It wasn't just the bad pass for the first goal.
“It was too much freestyle. When you lose the structure, the wrong pass hurts even more. If it is 3-0 for a long time, the opponent surrenders. That is how the momentum shifts.”
The next one for Germany is the semi -final against Portugal in June.
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