Germany U21 hero Florian Wirtz has "indescribable feeling" semi-final goals
Bayer Leverkusen wonderkid Florian Wirtz has said it was an "indescribable feeling" to score two quickfire goals and help the Germany U21 team reach the European Championship final.
Wirtz was the star of the show in Hungary on Thursday as he netted twice inside eight minutes to lead his side to a 2-1 victory over the Netherlands in the UEFA U21 Euro semi-final.
The 18-year-old attacking midfielder also set a new championship record for the fastest ever goal in the process, pouncing for the opener with a poacher's finish after only 29 seconds.
"It hasn't quite sunk in for me yet," Wirtz said after the game of his man-of-the-match performance. "It's an indescribable feeling."
Wirtz really set the U21s on their way to a final showdown with Portugal on Sunday when he cleverly drilled home a second goal from the edge of the area. The teenager showed some brilliant touches after making it 2-0, while Germany's Mergim Berisha hit the woodwork three times before the Dutch got what proved a consolation strike in the second half.
"To score a goal is always nice but to score for my country for the first time in a semi-final like this is quite special," Leverkusen star Wirtz admitted.
Germany U21 boss Stefan Kuntz said it had been difficult for Wirtz because he was so highly praised in advance of the tournament despite having only turned 18 in May. He had also missed the team's group-stage matches in March because he was called up to the Germany senior squad for World Cup qualifiers the same month.
Watch: Wirtz rewrites Bundesliga history
Want more Bundesliga Action?
The former Cologne youngster was already the youngest player ever to feature for Germany at U21 level, and his reputation is continuing to grow after getting five goals and five assists for Leverkusen in the 2020/21 Bundesliga season.
Having played in a deeper role as Germany scraped past Denmark on penalties in the quarter-final, Wirtz did serious damage on the right side of the attack in the 4-3-3 formation that Germany deployed against the Netherlands.
"I played in a somewhat more attacking role this time, so that gave me more space and I was able to create more danger," he told reporters.
Related news
Bundesliga 2, Matchday 17 overview
Kaiserslautern host promotion rivals Cologne with the winner set to finish 2024 top of Germany's second tier...
Schick's four-goal haul propels Leverkusen to victory
Patrik Schick scored four times as the defending champions kept up their pursuit of leaders Bayern with a commanding 5-1 win over Freiburg.
Who is Patrik Schick?
Find out more on the Leverkusen man who has bounced back from a slew of injuries to be decisive once more for Die Werkself...