Germany vs Hungary
Stuttgart’s MHPArena is the venue as Euro 2024 Group A leaders Germany take on Hungary in a ‘David vs Goliath’ clash.
Germany kicked things off in Group A with a scintillating 5-1 romping of 10-man Scotland to set one foot in the Euros knockout stages for the fifth consecutive tournament. Though they enter this fixture as betting favorites, ‘Die Mannschaft’ can’t afford to underestimate Hungary, especially after drawing 2-2 against them at Euro 2020 in Munich. Indeed, the Germans’ record across their last four matches against this opposition is perfectly balanced (W1, D2, L1). With three of those four meetings featuring under 2.5 goals, a cagey affair could be on the cards, even though three of Germany’s last four internationals have seen over 2.5 goals and both teams on the scoresheet. But inspired by their biggest home win since November 2021, they’ll be confident of making it five successive home games unbeaten in all competitions (W3, D1).
In the meantime, Hungary couldn’t have begun their third consecutive appearance at the European Championships any worse. They slipped to a 2-0 halftime deficit against Switzerland before pulling one back in the second half. However, a 3-1 loss at the start of their Group A campaign left the Hungarians at a single win in eight Euro fixtures in the 21st century (D4, L3). With all three defeats in that sequence seeing the ‘Magyars’ concede at least three times, another defeat could be as well be heavy and effectively rule them out of the qualification spots. Manager Marco Rossi can take heart from overseeing a 1-0 win in Hungary’s last visit to German soil in the UEFA Nations League in September 2022.