Just when Gareth Southgate really needed it, England got a result to change the mood.
From the depths of despair and a potentially damaging dispiriting defeat, Harry Kane salvaged a precious draw as he closed in on his own piece of history. Kane smashed hone a last-gasp penalty after a VAR check to send the travelling England fans up in the Gods in the Allianz Arena home happy.
It was Kane’s 50th goal for England and took him past Sir Bobby Charlton and into outright second place, just three behind Wayne Rooney. And if ever there was a night when the Tottenham striker proved his worth to England, then this was it because you never had any doubt when he stepped up.
It also felt like such a big moment for Southgate because another defeat after losing in Hungary last Saturday would have really put him under pressure. This is a tournament and a run of four fixtures they can probably do without on the back of a long, hard gruelling season.
Too many players looked jaded and it took the introduction of Jack Grealish as a late substitute to turn the tide. He did more in 20-odd minutes than Mason Mount managed in the previous 70.
There must be a message in there somewhere because the Mount and Grealish debate is one the fans constantly talk about. And now they probably have their point. But it was not just Mount who struggled. The reality was that Germany were the better team for much of the match and yet Southgate’s men showed real heart and courage not to give up.
That was their best quality and one goal, one lucky break has changed the mood ahead of facing Italy at Molineux on Saturday. There are plenty of issues for Southgate to solve with less than six months before the World Cup. But nicking a result against the odds versus their great footballing rivals probably never felt sweeter and left the home fans stunned while the 3,400-plus travelling supporters celebrated.
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There was never going to a repeat of the famous 5-1 win the last time England played in Munich but the Germans will probably feel equally hard done by again. It was far from a convincing performance and England’s best-laid plans started to go wrong after just 14 minutes when Kalvin Phillips hobbled off injured and Jude Bellingham had to come on to replace him.
How they must rue Bayern Munich wonderkid Jamal Musiala’s decision to turn his back on England, who he represented at under-21 level, to opt to play for Germany. Musiala was the best player on the pitch until he went off.
England started slowly, Germany were in charge and the hosts always looked dangerous. It felt like they were waiting for their moment. It came after 50 minutes, when they made a slow build-up before Joshua Kimmich played in Jonas Hofmann and he fired past England 'keeper Jordan Pickford, who might have done better.
However, the Everton shot-stopper redeemed himself with a super save from Thomas Muller which kept England in the contest - and it all changed with the introduction of Grealish. Suddenly, England had hope and inspiration.
Kane was denied by a brilliant save from Manuel Neuer after fine work by Grealish. Then, England got their break after 86 minutes. Germany defender Nico Schlotterbeck ran across Kane, tripped him and Spanish referee Carlos del Cerro Grande gave a penalty after checking his VAR screen.
You just know there will not be any slip-up with Kane and the England captain hammered hone his 50th goal for his country to earn Southgate’s men a precious draw.
