First-time ball boy becomes Germany’s unlikely hero in Nations League clash against Italy

Germany defeated Italy in the teams’ Nations League clash on Sunday night and the country found a new hero: a fifteen-year-old ball boy, Noel Urbaniack, who helped Kimmich with quick ball delivery for the their second goal in the match.
The game ended 3-3 on the night but Germany managed to defeat the Italians a 5-4 overall margin after two legs. Germany will now take on Portugal in the semi-finals of the UEFA Nations Cup in June.
Urbaniack garnered plenty of attention after the game ended, particularly since he had played a key role in embarrassing the Italians during Germany’s second goal. Urbaniack’s moment in the global spotlight came with Germany leading 1-0 in Dortmund. Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma pulled off a save from Tim Kleindienst’s header. With the Germans earning a corner, Donnarumma opted to bicker with his teammates. So caught up was the shot-stopper in his argument that he wandered outside of his six-yard box.
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The rest of Italians too seemed to have switched off at that stage, but Urbaniack did not. Urbaniack quickly passed the ball to Joshua Kimmich, who took a low corner which found the unmarked Jamal Musiala. Musiala directed the ball into an empty net. As Sky Sports noted, the goal was allowed because a player cannot be offside at a corner kick.
As much as the players, Urbaniack was credited for his part in the goal. “It is unbelievable. I have never been involved in something like that,” said Urbaniack after the game.
He was given a signed ball after the quarter-final second leg in Dortmund the Germany team.
Talking about the incident which led to Germany’s second goal, Urbaniack said: “We had brief eye contact. I saw he wanted the ball and I quickly threw it to him. It was my first time as a ball boy.”
(With inputs from Reuters)
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