"The team is a real team": Di Salvo's praise for the second suit

Antonio Di Salvo and his team survived the group stage flawlessly. IMAGO/DeFodi Images

Antonio Di Salvo delivered a vote of confidence in his team on Wednesday evening. After securing a spot in the quarterfinals against England, the German U21s were "only" fighting to win their group, but such a massive rotation is still quite bold: He changed his entire eleven. However, the second team fully repaid his trust from the first minute. "I said before the game that we trust all of our players. The boys did a great job," said the head coach on Sat.1 's microphone.

Ansgar Knauff, in particular, impressively demonstrated why he had always been the first substitute in the previous two group matches. The 23-year-old first scored himself and then provided the assist for the second goal. "I'm happy I could help the team," the winger modestly explained. His coach had taken the match winner aside before the match and encouraged him. "He should adopt the style we know from him. When he played from the start, it was good. That's also Eintracht's style. I reminded him of that," explained Di Salvo.

But despite the winger's strong performance, he didn't want to single out anyone. The 46-year-old also sees this as his team's greatest strength. "The team is strong because they're a real team. We put in the effort, blocked shots. That's what I expected from the team," explained Di Salvo.

Thanks to the win, the German national team now has an extra day's rest before the quarterfinals. While they face Italy on Sunday (9 p.m., LIVE! on kicker), group runner-up England will face Spain on Saturday (also 9 p.m.). However, the entire starting eleven should be rested after the rotation. "The guys who will play from the start were able to rest a bit," said Merlin Röhl .

Accordingly, they can "bring maximum energy onto the pitch." Di Salvo spelled out the key to a place in the semifinals shortly after the final whistle. "At this level, you can't make too many mistakes. You have to be consistent in your actions. Today we were consistent at the beginning in terms of scoring opportunities. Consistency, fun, possession – we want to show all of that," said the U-21 coach.