In Jürgen Klopp's first match managing the German national football team, Karim Adeyemi of FC Barcelona (24) missed a crucial scoring opportunity.
Germany drew 1-1 with the Netherlands, and reactions to this moment diverged sharply between Spanish and German media.
Why did this single miss elicit such different responses?
3-Line Summary
1. Germany drew 1-1 with the Netherlands in Klopp's debut
2. Adeyemi missed an open goal chance in the 39th minute
3. Media reactions to his mistake diverged following his transfer
39th Minute: Over the Empty Goal
Jürgen Klopp (59), taking the helm of the German national football team for the first time, made his debut last Thursday evening (local time) against the Netherlands. In the 38th minute of the first half, left-back Nathaniel Brown (23, Bayern Munich) got past Van Dijk (35) and drove into the penalty area before pulling the ball back across goal. The player receiving the ball was Karim Adeyemi. With the goalkeeper out of position and an empty net before him, Adeyemi—standing roughly 6 meters away—lifted the shot high over the crossbar. Felix Nmecha had put Germany ahead early in the match, but they conceded in second-half stoppage time to Liverpool's Cody Gakpo, ending the match 1-1. The next opponent, Greece, will be faced on Sunday in Augsburg.
Marca Was Harsh; Kimmich Was Lenient
Spanish media reacted particularly sharply to this moment. According to Sport Bild, Spanish outlet Marca wrote that "Brown served up the chance on a silver platter and Adeyemi blasted it over the goal," while AS described it as a "100% scoring opportunity missed." Eldesmarque rated Adeyemi as "disappointing," and El Periódico went so far as to suggest that had he made the same mistake at Barcelona's home stadium Camp Nou, he would have faced whistles from the crowd. Adeyemi transferred to FC Barcelona from Borussia Dortmund last summer and is now competing in Spain.
The German response, by contrast, was considerably more forgiving. According to SPOX, national team captain Joshua Kimmich defended his teammate after the match, saying: "I have no idea what it feels like to be sprinting like that and receive the ball—I'm not going to criticize him." RTL commentator Lothar Matthäus added, "He's a player who scores 9 out of 10 times; he knows it as well as anyone." Klopp himself, from the bench, covered his face with both hands in dismay. The sharp contrast in reactions to the identical moment reflects the reality that Adeyemi has become a constant subject of Spanish media scrutiny following his move.
References
Tags #KarimAdeyemi #JürgenKlopp #GermanNationalFootballTeam #KloppDebut #GermanyVsNetherlands #FCBarcelona #BorussiaDortmund #JoshuaKimmich #LotharMatthäus #NathanielBrown #CodyGakpo #Augsburg #GermanyVsGreece