Germany’s record ninth European championship got off to an impressive start, beating Denmark 4-0 in its opening Group B match on Friday.
An early goal from Lina Magull and second-half goals from Lea Schuller, Lena Lattwein and Alexandra Popp at Brentford Community Stadium ensured Germany maintained their record of never losing a Euro opening game.
It was sweet revenge for the Germans who lost 2-1 to Denmark in the quarterfinals of the previous tournament in 2017. The Danes finished as runners-up that year, but were unable to face off against a rampant Germany in this round.
Germany tore through the defense three times in the first 15 minutes but finally made the breakthrough in the 21st minute when Magull swooped down on defender Stine Pedersen and won the ball over goal and shot goalkeeper Lene Christiansen .
Martina Voss Tecklenburg’s side could have extended the lead before halftime but were thwarted by Christiansen or their own evil.
Christianen did well to deny Magull early in the second half as she fired from the midfielder. However, from the corner, Schuller went high to catch Magull’s cross and headed Germany’s second goal.
Denmark were barely threatened and conceded a third goal in the 78th minute when substitute Lattwein opened fire to knock out central defender Lena Oberdorf.
Another substitute was Popp, who missed the 2017 tournament due to injury, scoring his country’s 54th goal late in the game, while Denmark had 19-year-old Kathrine Moller Kuhl sent off. off the field at the last minute for the second goal.
Germany top the table with three points with Spain having beaten Finland 4-1 previously. Denmark next meets Finland on Tuesday, while Germany plays Spain later that day.
