Rising star Lars Bender has said his first start and goal for Germany will stay long in the memory after his winning strike set up Friday's quarter-final against Greece.
The Bayer Leverkusen midfielder came in at right-back for the suspended Jerome Boateng against Denmark on Sunday and the 23-year-old converted Mesut Ozil's pass to seal the 2-1 win which confirmed Germany as Group B winners.
"It was quite lucky that I happened to be in the right place at the right time, but you don't stop to think about it, you just hit it," said Bender.
"It's true that I'm not used to playing in the (right-back) position, but I played there in our warm-up matches for this tournament and I did well.
"The manager believed in me and that's why I felt very much at ease playing
Source: AFP
