Joshua Kimmich: Germany were the better team against Spain

Joshua Kimmich believes that Germany were unlucky to lose their Euro 2024 quarterfinal to Spain as they were the better team over the course of the 120 minutes.

Germany’s dream of winning the European Championship on home soil ended on Friday evening as they fell to a 2-1 defeat to Spain. Mikel Merino’s 119th minute winner helped La Roja qualify for the semifinals at Germany’s expense. Julian Nagelsmann’s side created the better chances over the course of the game, but were undone by their failure to make the most of them.

And Joshua Kimmich has admitted that it is hard to come to terms with the result as Germany played the better football against a very good Spain side. The Bayern Munich right-back is also of the opinion that Germany had an excellent team spirit and pulled together as a team for the entirety of the tournament.

“I think the result was very unfair,” Kimmich told ARD after the game. “I think Spain were the better team in the first-half. After that, we were much better in the second-half and extra time. Spain really just wanted to save themselves for the penalty shootout. We also actually should have had a penalty before Spain's second goal. A lot went against us, unfortunately.”

“When I look back, the last six weeks were very, very special - an incredible team spirit, especially from the guys who didn't play that much. The boys put so much energy into it. We believed in ourselves right to the end. That's why the disappointment is different and perhaps even greater than at previous tournaments. We weren't a good enough team then. We were definitely the better team against a very good Spain side [on Friday]. That's why it's now very difficult to come to terms with it."

Germany played some excellent football during the European Championship and showed that they are a force to be reckoned with. And while the narrow defeat to Spain will sting for a long time, they can look ahead to the 2026 FIFA World Cup with great optimism.