Liverpool’s Emre Can has defended going for a pizza with team-mates before Germany’s 5-0 thrashing by Portugal at the European Under-21 Championship but acknowledges he allowed complacency to get the better of him prior to his side’s exit.
Can was photographed with Germany team-mates Moritz Leitner, Leonardo Bittencourt, Nico Schulz and Yunus Malli after the group stage but before Portugal’s thumping semi-final victory, in which both Can and Schulz started while Bittencourt came off the bench and was subsequently sent off.
Matthias Ginter, part of the Germany World Cup winning squad last year was, according to Bild, angered by the photo and the behaviour of the quintet, saying: “Every player must ask themselves if they were absolutely professional that day. Some players were not as professional as you should be before a semi-final.”
But Can, who labelled the defeat ‘a dark day for all Germany’, stands by his actions, although admitted recent rave reviews had gone to his head.
“Going out for a pizza like that is normal. But perhaps I did think before the game that I was the best,” he said. “I have to get my feet back on the ground. I have received a lot of praise in the last two weeks. Nothing happened. We behaved in the way we should. I don’t know what Matze [Ginter] means.”
