In the most rambunctious, direct way, putting four past defending champion Portugal in a 4-2 win at Euro 2020.
When you consider Ronaldo’s drive and the talent, however ill-assorted, coupled with the earlier result in Budapest and France being held to a draw, there is a strong sense that anything could yet happen in Group F.
Going into the match you could have applied the old adage that there are 80 million national team coaches in Germany.
From Germany’s humiliating first-round exit at Russia 2018, to the decision to drop and — much — later recall Mats Hummels and Thomas Muller, to a string of poor results , there was plenty to criticize.
It’s a formation that is ill-suited to his squad, forces Joshua Kimmich to play out wide on the right and, most of all, seemed designed to accommodate one man: Gosens.
Indeed, the few that even thought of him, might not even have realized he was German until a few years ago.
Born to a Dutch father and German mother in Emmerich am Rhein, a town straddling the border between the Netherlands and Germany, he failed a trial at Borussia Dortmund as a youngster.
Low loved the idea of attacking wing-backs.
Why not? Well, other than the aforementioned fact that it forces you to play half a dozen other guys out of position, there’s also the fact that, apart from a 7-1 pasting of Latvia, Germany hadn’t looked convincing in half a dozen outings in that system.
The warning shot came early, after just five minutes when Gosens materialised at the far post with a highlight reel finish that was ruled out due to Serge Gnabry being offside.
Then, Gosens was involved in the build-up that led to Kimmich whipping it back for Raphael Guerreiro to also deflect into this own net.
And, after just three minutes, Kimmich, who had tucked inside, slipped it to Muller, who found Gosens wide open on the opposite side: a whipped cross, a Kai Havertz finish and it was 3-1.
But we did get perhaps the best match of the Euros thus far and we saw the birth of a star, as well as a World Cup-winning manager fully entitled to gloat.
Back in April, following Atalanta’s 1-0 Serie A victory over Juventus, Gosens had asked to swap shirts with the Portuguese megastar, but was rebuffed.
But Low’s insistence on his wing-backs will present multiple headaches for opposing managers going forward and the rest, to some degree can be worked on or, at least, mitigated.
A draw may suffice for both nations to advance, but nobody will want to take chances.