Portugal punishes Germany coldly and advances to the final

Goal: 1:0 Wirtz (48th), 1:1 F. Conceicao (63rd), 1:2 Ronaldo (68th)

Germany: ter Stegen - Anton (70' Adeyemi), Tah, Koch - Kimmich, Pavlovic (70' Nmecha), Goretzka, Mittelstädt (60' Gosens) - Sané (60' Gnabry), Wirtz - Woltemade (60' Füllkrug)

Portugal: Diogo Costa - Neves (58. Nelson Semedo), Dias, Inacio, Mendes - Fernandes, Neves (58. Vitinha), Silva - Neto (83. Jota), Ronaldo (90. Palhinha), Trincao (58. F. Conceicao)

The most important thing in brief: Germany lost the Nations League semi-final 2-1 to Portugal. In the end, the result was deserved, as the Portuguese had much more to add after Wirtz had gone 1-0 down in the 48th minute. While Portugal made numerous substitutions, the German substitutions brought more chaos than finesse to the game. Conceicao's outstanding performance and the eternal Ronaldo then turned the game around. In the end, the score could have been higher. Portugal beat Germany for the first time in 25 years. And Ronaldo, at the age of 40, beat the German national team for the first time. Germany, therefore, is only playing for third place.

95th minute: OUT! Germany is out!

94th minute: Two minutes left. Germany goes for a free kick, but gets a counterattack. Poor play. Ter Stegen tries again. But Kimmich fires the ball into Vitinha's feet. Corner for Portugal. 80 seconds remaining.

93rd minute: A lot of fuss around the corner. Kimmich. And the ball flies over everyone and out of bounds. Füllkrug moans a bit. To no avail.

92nd minute: One minute of stoppage time is already up. The German national team can't find a gap. Kimmich finds Wirtz. Corner!

90th minute: Ronaldo leaves. And celebrates it mightily. This, in turn, annoys the German fans immensely. We get five minutes of stoppage time.

89th minute: Ter Stegen, you devil. Ronaldo pokes the ball into the middle. There's a double-double chance for Portugal. And Ter Stegen saves both. That was a real strength. But Germany's defense is wild.

88th minute: Gnabry misplaces a pass. There's a huge commotion in the stadium. Then Kimmich knocks Ronaldo down deep in the Portuguese half. Time passes again.

86th minute: There's a lot of excitement in the game right now. A throw-in decision is met with whistles. Portugal has the ball. And time is on their side.

85th minute: A mob formation on the pitch. Yellow cards are being thrown. For something. Now please, let's play football again.

84th minute: Germany hits the post! Adeyemi tries to beat everyone, shooting from the left half. Bam. Post. What a pity.

83rd minute: Okay, that's unfair. Conceicao is sent through and takes a 12-meter shot from Tah from 10 meters out. Then he circles the German center-back and aims for the far corner. Just wide.

82nd minute: The minutes are ticking away in Munich. Germany needs a goal, but mostly doesn't even have the ball. Now a longer relay. But the ball into the penalty area is cleared again.

80th minute: Bruno Fernandes plays "catch the hat" with Jonathan Tah. Tah kicks Fernandes's legs away. Yellow card and free kick. But they're still a good 30 meters from the goal.

78th minute: Portugal repeatedly breaks through on the right, where Gosens and Adeyemi... defend adventurously. And again, someone breaks through. Ter Stegen just manages to get to the low cross. And then Kimmich puts out the fire like an honorary member of the volunteer fire department.

77th minute: Two deep balls look for Adeyemi, but neither finds the right spot. Gnabry then looks for Füllkrug with a cross, but he smashes into Goncalo Inacio. There's no real danger.

76th minute: Germany plays quickly forward, but a misunderstanding ends all the euphoria. Portugal now largely controls the ball and the opponent. It will be tough to come back.

74th minute: This German team on the pitch now is rather wild. They lack a lot of quality. But they're trying. Adeyemi runs onto a long ball at the byline. Then the flag goes up.

72nd minute: Germany has shaken itself off and is trying again. But the truth is, those were some very weak minutes defensively for the battered German defense. Now they need a significant improvement to even dream of reaching the final.

70th minute: Ronaldo chants resonate from 10,000 Portuguese voices in the stadium. Meanwhile, Nagelsmann reacts, bringing on Adeyemi and Nmecha for Anton and Pavlovic. This sounds a bit more attacking and like a back four.

68th minute: Goal for Portugal! And it's the Maestro. After a nimble pass, Nuno Mendes is free on the left. He finds Ronaldo in the middle. He pushes the ball over the line. But was he offside? No. The goal counts. The game is turned around.

67th minute: Germany finally breaks free after Portugal pushed for a 2-1 lead. Gnabry's cross is brutally punched out of the danger zone by Diogo Costa.

63rd minute: Portugal equalizes! Francisco Conceicao—the son of the legendary Sergio—fools the German defense with a bold run and curls the ball into the far corner from 22 meters. A brilliant effort.

62nd minute: Cristiano Ronaldo is ready to take a free kick from 25 meters. The usual pose. The usual result. The ball hits the wall.

60th minute: After a triple substitution by the Portuguese, Nagelsmann also makes three substitutions. Gnabry, Füllkrug, and Gosens come on for Sané, Woltemade, and Mittelstädt.

59th minute: Portugal wins a corner. Ronaldo climbs high, but puts the ball wide and over the bar.

57th minute: And of course, Portugal has a chance right after that. Bruno Fernandes circles the German defense and shoots. The ball goes just wide of the far post. And just like in the first half, there's no corner where one should have been awarded.

56th minute: Portugal is trying to find a response—but the emphasis here is still on trying. Germany is defending with great energy and leaving few gaps.

50th minute: For two minutes, the stadium remained perplexed as the goal was checked. It was a passive offside position by Woltemade. Vincic went to the monitor and looked at it. And he awarded the goal.

48th minute: 1-0 to Germany! Kimmich plays a perfect chip pass, even though he's practically already on the edge of the penalty area. Wirtz runs into position behind giant Woltemade and heads the ball perfectly into the right corner. Germany leads!

47th minute: Whoa, boo! A misplaced pass from Tah lets Nuno Mendes sprint down the left. His superb cross finds Ronaldo at the far post. But his long leg sends the ball wide of the goal. Phew.

46th minute: The second half is underway. And it's once again the old question that could decide this game: Who wants it more?

Halftime: The halftime whistle blows. There's a brief round of applause, but not too much. Both teams tried hard for a long time, but the Germans had the better chances. But in the end, all the Portuguese needed was one counterattack and the game could be over for the German national team. After all, Cristiano Ronaldo has had them almost completely under control so far.

45th minute: The game is plodding along toward halftime. The Germans aren't really getting the ball into the game, and the Portuguese seem strangely subdued. Vincic adds a minute of stoppage time. That's exactly one minute too many.

43rd minute: At least another shot. Germany is launching an attack that even the confusion is confusing. Right, left, right, center, left. Wirtz then shoots from a tight spot. Right into Costa's arms.

40th minute: Wirtz steps on Bruno Fernandes's foot. The Portuguese player doubles over. Slavko Vincic doesn't even award a free kick. Play is suspended for a while as Fernandes receives treatment and limps off the field.

35th minute: Germany – the H stands for harmless in this scene. Kimmich and Wirtz exchange a short free kick from 40 meters. The Leverkusen player sprints forward and runs into a stumbling block. The ball bounces to Mittelstädt, who runs with it out of bounds.

33rd minute: Aiaiai, it almost happened. A dream pass from the back from Mendes finds Neto. He penetrates the penalty area, trying to outwit Koch. But the Frankfurt player stays cool and puts his toe in. A great clearance. This immediately leads to a German counterattack, which Sané squanders.

32nd minute: Germany has now gotten a good grip on Portugal's counterattacking style. (Every time you write something like that, a counterattack goal is scored a minute later.)

30th minute: Germany's next shot. After a somewhat confusing combination play between Kimmich and Sané, the latter lays the ball back to the edge of the box. Pavlovic shoots directly. The ball flies towards the far corner, but is stopped by a Portuguese defender's leg.

27th minute: The game swings back and forth again. Woltemade, however, finds no passing option on a promising attack and gets tangled up.

26th minute: Kimmich falls asleep during a throw-in, and Neto escapes again. But as he tries to pass the ball in, Goretzka jumps in the path of the shot. Corner. No consequences.

24th minute: Germany is putting the pressure on. But after two great chances, they can't break through. And Portugal tries to calm the game down.

21st minute: Holy cow! That Diogo Costa! Great dribbling from Sané, who then cuts the ball across to Goretzka. He shoots low from 15 meters, but the Portuguese keeper is lightning fast and just manages to save it.

19th minute: Huge chance for Germany! Pavlovic and Woltemade play a superb one-two on the edge of the penalty area. Then Pavlovic is brought down, not worthy of a penalty. The ball bounces back to Woltemade, who immediately shoots. Great reflex save from Diogo Costa. Only a corner.

17th minute: It's not yet the German storm that hit Italy in March. This is, of course, also due to the lineup. Woltemade is still completely in the air.

15th minute: The magician Joao Neves leaves the German midfield running into empty space with an elegant move. The pass to Ronaldo is a bit too high. The superstar retrieves the ball and curves inside past two opponents. His shot goes wide, deflected by Tah.

14th minute: The Portuguese are playing more straightforwardly. Germany could have just broken through. But instead of a quick pass to the left, Goretzka opts for three touches. Then to the left. However, the center is blocked, and Mittelstädt's low cross is easily cleared.

12th minute: After winning the ball, the Portuguese are moving quickly. Neto is sent on again in the end. Kimmich gets his body in front of him – and the free kick. The Iberians have been playing better so far.

11th minute: More Neto has been the order of the day for Portugal so far. The left winger again beats the German. Tah can't stop him from shooting. The ball flies a meter or two over the bar from 18 meters.

10th minute: A strong effort from Kimmich, who gets his studs on the instep from Nuno Mendes. The match lacks flow at the moment.

9th minute: Germany tries to gain real control of the game for the first time. Ter Stegen is forced to play the long ball. After a header, Woltemade is ruled offside.

7th minute: Things get off to a lively start. After a mistake by Tah, Chelsea's Pedro Neto escapes again. Ronaldo's low pass into the middle is taken off his teammate Joao Neves's feet. The 40-year-old takes aim, but ter Stegen is quick to get down and holds the ball.

6th minute: Before their big chance, Germany had already combined well down the left. Unfortunately, they couldn't get the ball deep. Instead, the ball fell to Sané, who turned and played it back, thus wasting a very good opportunity.

4th minute: Germany's first big chance! A long ball from Wirtz finds Kimmich in the six-yard box. The right-back crosses to Goretzka, but the ball goes slightly behind his back. Goretzka gets a shot on goal, but it goes straight into the arms of Diogo Costa.

3rd minute: Kimmich loses a running duel with Pedro Neto. Koch clears his fierce cross for a corner. Ter Stegen sails under the ball. Luckily, a teammate heads the ball out.

2nd minute: Ter Stegen loses control of the ball when Ronaldo puts him under pressure. The Barca keeper blasts the ball into the stands. This could have been better.

1st minute: Kick-off in Munich! Portugal has the ball. Germany has the will to press. And for the first time, they're almost outplayed. Tah just manages to intercept a through ball.

9:09 p.m.: The players are ready. The storm has passed for now. Let the semifinals begin!

9:00 p.m.: So, we're approaching kickoff. The Portuguese have already taken up position in the players' tunnel. The German team is still waiting for a bit.

8:43 p.m.: Due to severe weather, the match against Portugal will not start until 9:10 p.m., ten minutes later than scheduled. This was announced to spectators at Munich's Allianz Arena via a loudspeaker.

8:40 p.m.: Despite the warning of severe storms in southern Germany, the Nations League match is scheduled to go ahead. UEFA announced that it is monitoring the weather situation together with the authorities. Spectators at the Allianz Arena were advised to bring rain ponchos or jackets.

Severe thunderstorms with hail, gusty winds, and heavy rain were forecast for Bavaria on Wednesday. According to the German Weather Service (DWD), these were expected to begin in the afternoon; at least in Munich, the storms weren't as severe yet. The peak was expected between 7:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. Isolated hailstones could reach a diameter of five centimeters, it was reported.

8:34 p.m.: The storm started during warm-up: The goalkeepers of the German national football team interrupted their warm-up for the Nations League semi-final against Portugal for a few minutes after a brief visit. The goalkeepers, including Marc-André ter Stegen, fled the storm with its large hailstones, but then returned.

The teams also began warming up around 8:30 p.m.—half an hour before the scheduled kickoff. National coach Julian Nagelsmann, speaking on ZDF, anticipated a somewhat delayed start.

8:18 p.m.: It's hailing in the stadium! FOCUS-online reporter Dominik Rosing is reporting live from the arena. "It was really, really loud when the hailstones hit the roof; you could barely hear your own voice," he says. The pitch is completely bathed in white.

7:50 p.m.: The German national team lineup is known! As expected, Nagelsmann is bringing in Woltemade to attack against Portugal. The Stuttgart native is making his debut with the senior national team today. Pavlovic is surprisingly starting in defensive midfield alongside Kimmich. In defense, the national coach could opt for a back three of Anton, Tah, and Koch. A back four with Mittelstädt on the left wing is also possible. Here's how Germany will line up against Portugal:

However, the semifinal kickoff at 9:00 p.m. (on TV via ZDF/DAZN) has been confirmed for the time being. Spectators at the Allianz Arena are advised to bring rain ponchos or jackets.

Severe thunderstorms with hail, gusty winds, and heavy rain are expected in Bavaria. According to the German Weather Service (DWD), these are expected to begin this afternoon, with the peak expected between 7:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. Isolated hailstones could reach a diameter of five centimeters, it was reported. However, a DWD expert predicted that the severe storms may pass north of Munich.

3:25 p.m.: The memory of his only title win with the national football team so far makes Leon Goretzka want more. "For me, it was the only trophy I've won with Germany so far. It's something I look back on fondly. It's probably about time for another one," said the Bayern Munich player before the Nations League semifinal against Portugal (9:00 p.m./ZDF/DAZN) in Munich.

In 2017, Goretzka won the Confederations Cup with a promising team under national coach Joachim Löw. Eight years later, the midfielder is part of the exclusive DFB quartet that was already present in Russia, alongside goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen, captain Joshua Kimmich, and assistant coach Sandro Wagner.

3.12 p.m.: Before the start of the Nations League final tournament, national coach Julian Nagelsmann has sent a clear message to the national football players who are on the verge of retiring, with a view to the World Cup season.

The squad for the season's final match against Portugal in Munich this evening (9 p.m.) also includes players like Leverkusen's Robert Andrich, who was specifically mentioned by Nagelsmann. Andrich had barely played in the Bundesliga recently.

"We decided on the coaching staff, even with the players who haven't played as much, that we want to round out the Nations League a bit," explained the national coach. And that includes players "who have simply been there for a long time and have contributed to us now reaching the Final Four." The 30-year-old Bayer pro Andrich, who also participated in the 2024 European Championship at home, is a prime example.

"We didn't want to drop anyone who hadn't played much at the club and therefore didn't necessarily need to be there," Nagelsmann said. He explained this to Andrich. "He still has a huge influence on the team, both off the pitch and on it when he plays."