Euro 2024 began dismally for Andy Robertson as Scotland fell to a 5-1 defeat against Germany, with a former Liverpool colleague scoring. For Robertson, captaining Scotland on Friday was a moment of pride, marking their second major tournament appearance since 1998. However, the harsh reality quickly dawned when Germany, the hosts, scored within 10 minutes courtesy of Florian Wirtz.
Jamal Musiala shone next, followed by Kai Havertz scoring from a penalty, establishing a 3-0 lead by half-time after Ryan Porteous' egregious red-card foul. Post-interval, Scotland showed improvement but suffered another goal from Niclas Fullkrug's powerful shot, although Antonio Rudiger's own goal provided a brief highlight for the fans. Emre Can, a last-minute addition to the German squad, dealt the final blow, scoring from the box's edge to secure the 5-1 victory.
This marked the largest win in a European Championship opener, leaving Robertson visibly upset during his post-match ITV interview. "We completely misjudged the first half. We were absent, lacked aggression, and allowed skilled players too much control," stated the Liverpool defender. "Both teams had strategies, but theirs was vastly superior. It wasn't a lack of practice, but a failure to execute on the field. "Big moments demand performance, and regrettably, we didn't deliver in the first half. Despite being a man down in the second half, the team performed admirably. "The support we have here is tremendous, yet today's outcome was a massive letdown."
On the night, Robertson excelled for Scotland, executing the second-highest number of defensive actions at seven, succeeding in all three tackles and winning six of eight duels.
According to FotMob, Kieran Tierney, with four passes into the final third, was the only player to make more than the Scotland captain, who made three. This is quite telling within the context of the game.
In contrast, Germany's Toni Kroos, with 18, played nearly as many passes into the attacking third as the entire Scotland team, which made 19. Liverpool fans have another match to look forward to on Saturday, as Dominik Szoboszlai's Hungary takes on Switzerland in the other initial Group A encounter, starting at 2pm on ITV1.
