Europe's Group A matches came to a close in the early hours of Monday morning (24th). Hosts Germany held Switzerland to a 1-1 draw in extra time with a goal scored by substitute Foucault, a thrilling way to stay at the top of the group. Germany's Round of 16 match will be against Denmark, the next best team in Group C. It looks like the opponent will be Denmark at this point. Switzerland finished second in the group despite the defeat. In the other matchup between Hungary and Scotland, Scotland took third and kept their hopes of advancing alive.
Despite the fact that Germany had already secured qualification before the match, the coach did not replace Gauselmann in order to secure the first place in the group, and won 11 points in three consecutive matches with the same lineup. The hosts were in control of the match soon after the start, with Xaviers scoring a header from a corner kick in just three minutes, and Antwerp firing a shot in the 17th minute, but Musciana was pushed down by the opponent for a foul.
Switzerland survived the adversity and succeeded with their first attack in the 28th minute. Few crossed from the left and Anduni scored at full stretch; immediately after, Germany came close to conceding again. Anduni's speed in front of the field overpowered Rudiger and hit the post with a half-dozen shots. Germany had nearly 70% of the ball, but were behind for a while.
The changeover saw Germany intensify their attack. Kolyanwadis broke through in a straight line in the 50th minute, with Musya basking in the middle of the field and being blocked by Ennishema. Germany then went all out on offense with substitutions of Mesbia, Foucault, and Lilezini. Xaviers scored a header in the 85th minute, and in stoppage time, Germany finally scored a 1-1 equalizer with a header by Fuclos from a cross from the left by Dallarin, thrillingly preserving the group's first-place qualification.
In the other Group A match between Scotland and Hungary, Scotland's offense was lackluster despite their high ball possession. Hungary, on the contrary, was sharp on the counterattack. Hungarian center Vellicobin scored with a header in the first half, and Cszynszubos hit the post in the second half. In stoppage time, Hungary countered quickly with a 1-0 shutout by Cziyunsubov to move up to third, still in contention for the best third place in the quarterfinals.
