the same rivals and the scene, of course, of England’s great football triumph. I can’t promise you England 4 Germany 2 (Kane hat-trick) but there should be plenty of excitement. Firstly, this is England’s last game before the World Cup in Qatar and therefore the last chance for those on the fringes of the first team to make a strong case for inclusion, and also for Gareth Southgate to play with his training and approach. Perhaps it is also important that England put on a decent show for their fans, many of whom are quite unhappy with the way Gareth has been handling things of late.
As for the Nations League, England sit bottom of Group A3 with just two points from their previous five games. Germany is third with six points and Italy second with eight. Hungary have impressively taken 10 points from their five games and if they get a point against the Azzurri they will go through to next year’s final. Not a bad achievement. England, meanwhile, will be relegated from Group A to Group B.
So it’s not great times for England at the moment, and a youngster might be thinking he’s backed the right horse. Here’s my colleague Mike McGrath with an article on Germany’s Jamal Musiala.
Jamal Musiala still gets text messages joking that he should wear England’s Three Lions instead of Germany, who he switched allegiance to after breaking into the first team at Bayern Munich.
Musiala, 19, played on the pitch at St George’s Park when he was promoted to Chelsea, but his move to Bayern, and being accidentally spotted by Hansi Flick, meant his decision to play for Die Mannschaft was tough but relatively simple.
The teenager certainly does not regret the decision. He sat in Wembley Auditorium before facing his former country, insisting it was the famous stadium he dreamed of playing in, rather than the England shirt.
“It was definitely not an easy decision to make,” he said. “It was a decision that I thought about for a long time and I think when everything comes together, with me and my family and everyone, it was a decision that I felt very comfortable with. I don’t look back with any regrets or anything. I made my decision and that’s it.
“Some of my friends send me messages here and there when they see me saying ‘I should have played in England’ and stuff. We joke around here but I think they’re still happy about my decision. I’m sure some fans England won’t be happy, but I think that means I’m doing well if it upsets some people that I didn’t choose their country.”
Musiala’s friends from his England days include Jude Bellingham, who also moved to Germany to start his senior career. He is also in contact with Tino Livramento, whom he met from the Chelsea and England youth teams.
“From my time with England at youth level, they have some incredible talents and I was playing with a lot of them as well – the under-21s and under-19s,” said Musiala. “There were a lot of players who can have an amazing career and I think England’s youth system is really good for that, to tap into those talents and make sure they get better.
“They have a lot of quality. I think we can say that this match is a perfect match for both of us because we will both need this match to go into the World Cup with confidence. Everyone is a little surprised with their results right now.”
Musiala has a photo of himself and Gareth Southgate before playing for England. “Yeah, that was at my elementary school in Corpus Christi. I saw him there, he had a picture. It’s not up to me right now, but we took a picture together,” she said.
He was only brought to Flick’s attention in a training session at Bayern, before the coach eventually took over the national team. At the time, Flick thought he was just another of Bayern’s excellent young players, but he quickly saw that he was a player ready for the first team.
“It’s kind of a funny story,” Flick said. “My assistant at Bayern said we have talent in the academy and I said ok, let’s have a look. We immediately saw he was a great talent and we never looked back. It’s been a fantastic development and he has a great feeling on the pitch, who can solve situations with a positive coach.”