Germany – Hungary: ‘Exciting future, but patience needed for Julian Nagelsmann’s team’

As for the successors to the recently retired players, Marc-Andre ter Stegen is expected to take Neuer’s place.

The 32-year-old Barcelona goalkeeper has been given the number 1 shirt for the matches against Hungary and the Netherlands, finally achieving his goal after a long wait.

In contrast, there is no clear successor to Kroos as the deep-lying playmaker. The most realistic choice would be Bayern’s Aleksandar Pavlovic, who withdrew from the European Championship squad due to tonsillitis.

The 20-year-old is seen as a top-class talent who could develop into Germany’s next great attacker.

But it would be asking too much to expect a player who has only made 21 Bundesliga appearances for Bayern to lead Germany in the same way that Kroos did at Euro 2024.

Although Nagelsmann’s team was among the oldest in the tournament, they will be much younger and less experienced in the future.

Considering the way Musiala, Wirtz and Pavlovic play football and sometimes even celebrate it, the team could be a promising candidate for fans.

But the German public must be patient and accept that this new generation may face setbacks in the coming years.