Lina Magull scores excellent volley goal to give Germany the lead (Video)
![22 June 2019, France (France), Grenoble: Football, women: World Cup, Germany - Nigeria Final Round, Round of 16, Stades des Alpes: Germany's Lina Magull (M) in a duel with Nigeria's Onome Ebi (l) and Osinachi Ohale. Photo: Sebastian Gollnow/dpa (Photo by Sebastian Gollnow/picture alliance via Getty Images) 22 June 2019, France (France), Grenoble: Football, women: World Cup, Germany - Nigeria Final Round, Round of 16, Stades des Alpes: Germany's Lina Magull (M) in a duel with Nigeria's Onome Ebi (l) and Osinachi Ohale. Photo: Sebastian Gollnow/dpa (Photo by Sebastian Gollnow/picture alliance via Getty Images)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/639759a11015d2c959719e3b7f6c0e5ae3917a39a50a9855606f1bb0397f7057.jpg)
Germany are one of the favorites to win the 2019 Women’s World Cup, and they got off to an early lead against Sweden in the quarterfinals, courtesy of a wonderful finish by rising star Lina Magull.
Midfielder Dzsenifer Marozsan, one of the Ballon d’Or finalists last year, went down with a broken toe in the first Group stage game, and Lina Magull was one of the players trusted to step up in the Lyon star’s absence. Germany haven’t missed a beat without Marozsan in the starting lineup, and Magull once again came up with the goods for one of the World Cup favorites.
Germany faced Sweden in the quarterfinals, and it only took 16 minutes for Magull to find the back of the net for the favored side.
It all started when Sweden nearly scored via forward Sofia Jakobsson, but Almuth Schult denied her with a wonderful foot save to keep Germany’s defensive record perfect in this World Cup. Soon after, Germany caught a break, and star midfielder Sara Däbritz did very well to find Magull, who made an excellent run in between Sweden’s center backs.
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From there, Magull had some work to do. She flicked the ball up to set up a side volley, and Magull finished acrobatically. The ball nestled perfectly into the far side of the net, leaving Sweden’s keeper no chance. Magull’s goal should go down as one of the best in the tournament, especially from a purely technical standpoint.
This gave Germany a critical early lead against a strong Sweden side, who had been threatening to score throughout the game.
Germany came into this game against Sweden not allowing a single goal in the World Cup, just as they did in 2007 when they last won the tournament. But for Germany, the question is whether or not they can score enough goals, and Magull has become a rising star in attack this tournament.
Next. Watch Miedema score the first goal against Italy. dark
Just 24, Magull currently plays for Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga after being a top goal-scoring threat for Freiburg. She’s been one of the standouts for Germany in this year’s World Cup and will likely be a regular in the lineup going forward. Magull is also a former U-20 captain for Germany, leading the youth team to a World Cup title in 2014.