Ilkay Gundogan has set up a goal for Jamal Musiala and then scored himself to give Germany a comfortable 2-0 win over Hungary in Group A, making the host nation the first side to qualify for the knockout stage at Euro 2024.
With two wins out of two, the Germans will finish in the top two of the group, after Scotland drew 1-1 with Switzerland, also depriving Hungary a top-two placing.
Playing in his hometown, Musiala gave the Germans the lead in the 22nd minute, after some horrendous Hungarian defending saw the ball poked into his path by Gundogan, and he needed no second invitation, hammering the ball in, via a defender.
Roland Sallai had a goal ruled out in first-half stoppage time for Hungary and they wasted other decent chances, before Gundogan - in a man-of-the-match performance - scored in the 67th minute, after a clinical build-up and a simple finish.
While few would have bet against the home side, it was in fact Germany's first competitive win over Hungary since the 1954 World Cup final - the first of their four world titles - and fans are now dreaming of a fourth European Championship triumph and on home soil.
"You can feel, when you see the euphoria of the people," said goalkeeper Manuel Neuer. "The atmosphere is good and happy it is taking place here.
"Germany are always in the favourites' circle, but we need to do our homework. We play the toughest group team next."
Feverish atmosphere
Watched by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the match began in a feverish atmosphere, with thousands of fans spending the day partying around Stuttgart.
On the eve of the match, Hungary manager Marco Rossi said his side could not afford to make any mistakes, but that's exactly what they did after 22 minutes.
Defender Willi Orban went to shoulder-barge Gundogan in his own area, but came off the worse for it and fell over. The German captain was then able to pull the ball back to Musiala, who smashed it in off defender Attila Fiola, while some Hungary players had stopped and were appealing for a foul.
Video review confirmed the goal after a quick check.
Hungary responded well, with Neuer having to dive across to the top corner to parry away a Dominik Szoboszlai free-kick shortly after.
They then thought they had equalised on the stroke of halftime, when Sallai headed in from a rebound, but it was ruled out for offside. They had another chance to level after halftime, when Barnabas Varga headed over the bar, but the Germans kept applying pressure, with Musiala in particular continuing to be a menace for the Hungary defence.
He was also involved in the build-up, when Gundogan doubled their lead in the 67th, sweeping in a low cross from Maximilian Mittelstadt.
"We are getting better, but as we improve, we have to overcome some problems," said Gundogan. "That is what this game showed today, especially in the first half, but that's the tournament - you have to survive such situations.
"We survived and then hit back."
Germany were able to keep possession and run the clock down, as they assured their place in the next round, before a final group game against Switzerland.
Hungary could still progress, if they beat Scotland and other results go in their favour.
"We made some mistakes, but some mistakes in football happen," said Rossi. "You can make mistakes.
"Teams like Germany and other world class teams play better than us, we know that. I'd say Germany is possibly the biggest favourite to win the Euro."
Reuters
