Cologne's youngster: EM semi-final against France after victory over Italy!

Cologne's youngster: EM semi-final against France after victory over Italy!

An exciting adventure for the German U21 national team is going! Last weekend, the DFB selection in the quarter-finals of the U21 European Championship successfully ended a hot duel against Italy and thanks to a 3-2 win after extra time, the ticket for the semi-finals secured. The Cologne Eric Martel was significantly involved in success as captain, while his colleague Jan Thielmann made an important contribution to the team, even if he was not yet used so often.

Now it is time to concentrate on the upcoming semi -finals against France on Wednesday evening. Germany has proven that it has established itself as a serious competitor on the European floor. The dramatic victory against Italy was characterized by emotions: after an early lead of the Italians in the 59th minute, the German boys struck back. Nick Woltemade equalized in the 69th minute, and the yellow-red cards to Italians Wilfried Gnonto and Mattia Zanotti should not be unmentioned. Ultimately, it was Merlin Röhl who scored the decisive goal in the 117th minute who catapulted the DFB-Elf in the semi-finals, reports Come-On-fc.com.

A look at the Cologne talent

Eric Martel, the captain, shines with consistently strong performance in the tournament and urgently used every minute on the square. Jan Thielmann, on the other hand, after a solid performance in the last group game against England, fights for more playing time. However, the two Cologne talent runs the time: their contracts at the 1st FC Köln run until 2026. In the coming weeks, it could be shown how their services in the European Championship will affect their future at the association, because the contract negotiations will only start after the tournament. The FC has already announced that you would like to avoid offspring -free departures in the coming year, and plans to extend the contracts or to transform them into a suitable transfer fee in the event of a sale.

• Eric Martel: Captain of the U21, plays strongly
• Jan Thielmann: showed good approaches, but has been trying to do more time
• contracts run by 2026
• Interest from SC Freiburg (Martel) and RB Leipzig (Thielmann)

The European Championship started in Slovakia on June 11, 2025 and runs until June 28, 2025. Germany plays in Group B and has qualified from the group phase without defeat. Ein Titelgewinn würde nicht nur dem Team eine wertvolle Erfahrung bringen, sondern könnte zudem die Verhandlungsposition des 1. FC Köln für seine Talente erheblich verbessern, wie fc.de in seinen Analysen zeigt. It will be exciting to observe how the competition is developing and what options could arise for Martel and Thielmann.

If the two players continue to work out, it could be exciting. Who knows? Perhaps the team will soon be carrying a new title home and thus attaching young people to young people in the eyes of larger clubs. It is to be hoped that the next game against France will be just as successful on Wednesday!