Euro 2024: Host Germany seeking to lift nation with unexpected run

Fighting, form, and fun are the three big takeaways from Germany's preparations for its Euro 2024 opener, as the host nation enters the event in a beguiling spot where anything could happen.

The fighting part came from a push-and-shove training ground altercation this week between fullback Antonio Rudiger and striker Niclas Fullkrug, an instant headline-grabber that cast further doubt on a team whose build-up under head coach Julian Nagelsmann has been far from perfect.

Nagelsmann's Germany takes on Scotland in Munich on Friday (3 p.m. ET on FOX) to kick off the tournament, having endured a miserable run in friendlies over the past year, including defeats to Colombia, Poland, Japan, Turkey and Austria.

And yet, despite all that, the coach believes it is a vibrant sense of humor — something not always associated with the German psyche, perhaps unfairly — that will serve him and his squad best over the coming weeks.

While the Rudiger/Fullkrug aggravation generated a wave of media attention, the message from the camp is that the fracas is actually a positive sign, a clearing of the air between two players who met in the Champions League final, and a display of just how much this summer means to the players.

"I see it as a good thing when situations like this occur," midfielder Toni Kroos told reporters. "Though I had to calm things down a little, it wasn't too serious. Niclas knows he is the one to blame if he gets into an altercation with Toni."

The ideal scenario for Germany is that this event mirrors the 2006 World Cup, when a German side under Jurgen Klinsmann entered its home tournament with low expectations but rode an increasing wave of national support to reach the semifinals, where it was unlucky to lose to