Germany U21 0-1 Spain U21: Tactical Player Report

Cristian Tello

With 3 crucial points at stake, the European heavyweights Spain and Germany went head to head in what was ultimately a pulsating encounter. Coming off a last gasp 3-2 loss against the Dutch, the Germans were looking for 3 crucial points to keep them at bay. Spain on the other hand had 3 points in the bag already and had a chance to book a place in the semifinals.

The match ended 1-0 with the Spaniards running out deserved winners and Germany disappointingly heading out of the tournament in the group stages. Spain as you would expect dominated possession against Russia but against Germany their play was characterized by a higher tempo. The Germans fought valiantly and like the previous game, were guilty of conceding late on. Spain’s impressive performance was largely due to their midfield performance. Thiago was impressive once again, Illaramendi wonderfully assured and solid and Koke had a decent game after being drafted into the line up. Slightly higher up the pitch, Isco was at his majestic best. However, the person I’ll be focusing on is Barcelona’s Cristian Tello.

The Barcelona-born winger started on the right of a front 3 as opposed to the opening game against Russia where he started on the left. The 21-year-old is hardly an unknown commodity in the footballing world, having already chalked up 37 appearances for the Catalan club, no mean feat considering the array of talent at the club. Capable of playing anywhere across the front 3 positions the most striking aspect of Tello’s play is an excellent first touch. His ability to stop the ball dead when receiving a pass is exemplary and very rarely will opposing full backs be able to steal the ball away from him due to a loose first touch. When he does get the ball, Tello has the ability to beat his man with skill or pace. Not shy of taking the defender on, Tello executed no less than 4 successful dribbles against Germany, a tally only bettered by Isco (7). One criticism that can be made of his play is that after getting into good positions, his decision making and end product is not as good as you would expect. His goal scoring ratio is certainly impressive enough however, as he’s regarded more as a winger, his crossing ability is an area to work on. As Spain move towards the business end of the tournament, Tello could play a pivotal role in how far Spain could go in this tournament.

Special Mention

Alvaro Morata was once again the winner for Spain’s U21 side. The Real Madrid youngster scored his 2nd late goal of the tournament to earn victory for the defending champions. The Spanish have tons of talent among their ranks, but we chose to include Alvaro Morata in our list of players to watch out for prior to the start of the tournament.