Havertz shines in dream Euro opener for Germany

Kai Havertz enjoyed the perfect start to Euro 2024 as he scored and assisted in Germany’s 5-1 win over Scotland to kick off the tournament.

The hosts were 1-0 ahead when Florian Wirtz scored the first goal of the finals after 10 minutes, and nine minutes later Kai was picked out inside the box and teed up Jamal Musiala to blast in a second.

Then in first-half stoppage-time, Ryan Porteous was red-carded for a foul in the area, allowing Kai to step up and coolly tuck the penalty past Angus Gunn and put the result to bed before half-time.

With that in mind, Kai was withdrawn on 63 minutes before his replacement Niclas Fullkrug netted a fourth, and while the Scots had a slither of a consolation when Antonio Rudiger netted an own goal, Emre Can’s late fifth reapplied the gloss on a wonderful first night for the Germans.

As for Scotland, Kieran Tierney played 77 minutes at centre-back on what was his 46th cap for his nation. He’ll be hoping for a more enjoyable experience when his team are next in action, when they face Switzerland on Wednesday looking to bounce back and get their tournament on track.

Kai meanwhile will turn his attention to his side’s second game of the group stage against Hungary on the same day, and will head into that fixture on a high after receiving plenty of praise for his display, as well as a great ovation from his supporters post-match after netting his 17th international goal.

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