Great.
Just fucking great.
Germany have been relegated from League A to League B of the UEFA Nations League after the Netherlands beat France 2-0 last night to take their points total up to six after three matches.
A goal on the brink of half-time from Gini Wijnaldum gave the Oranje a lead to protect against the world champions, and a 96th minute penalty, taken and scored by the supremely confident Memphis Depay, confirmed Germany’s fate.
Germany have already played three matches in Group A1, with just one game against the Netherlands remaining. However, it will now ultimately be a meaningless game as, regardless of the result, the 2014 world champions can only reach a maximum of four points, two behind the Netherlands’ current total.
After a disappointing campaign in Russia, the spiral continues for Joachim Low who might well see his side put into second seeds for the 2020 qualifiers that kick off in March.
As it stands, Germany are sitting alongside Poland in Pot 1 or 2 with the weekend’s games (as well as Monday’s) set to determine where their fate will lie.
If Germany are second seeds for the qualifiers, it shows the last that faces Ireland who are confirmed as a Pot 3 team now and, remember, only two will emerge to Euro 2020 from the qualifying groups this time.
So, potentially, Ireland could have a team like France or Spain as their Pot 1 opposition and bloody Germany from Pot 2. And then what would really be the point in persisting?
Germany will play in League B in the next Nations League, and could come up against the likes of Wales, Austria and Turkey.
