“I’ve fulfilled a childhood dream”: Hennes Behrens celebrates Germany debut
First Team
28.09.2026, 13:40
Hennes Behrens has joined Ulrich Biesinger, Helmut Haller, André Hahn and Mergim Berisha as the latest FC Augsburg player to become a Germany international while at the club. The 21-year-old made his senior international debut during their 1-0 loss to Greece at the WWK ARENA.
Following the final whistle, Behrens reflected on a special evening with mixed feelings, in which the joy over his debut and the disappointment of the defeat were closely intertwined: “I take pride and happiness in my debut. It was obviously a childhood dream that I’ve fulfilled tonight, even if the atmosphere was a bit subdued because of the game and the result.”
Behrens replaced Nathaniel Brown in the 84th minute with the intention of bringing renewed energy to the team and helping to turn the match around. “It all happened so quickly, so I had no time to be nervous,” said Behrens about the moments before he was subbed on.
But it wasn’t enough for Germany to score an equaliser, meaning Behrens’ debut at home in Augsburg ended in a 1-0 defeat. The Frankfurt-born player analysed the match with a suitably self-critical eye: “It was a difficult game against a Greece side who were hard to play against. They defended well with a low block, and we didn’t manage to play with full intensity across the 90 minutes.”
A positive assessment of his first week
Despite the disappointing result, Behrens has given a positive assessment of his first week with the national side. “I was able to learn a lot from the other lads, both as a person and as a player. Everything that’s happened over the past week has been really valuable to me,” he said, “Those of us who are new to the squad have been made to feel very welcome and overall, we’ve come together well as a team.”
Behrens wasn’t the only one to celebrate his Germany debut this week. Thursday evening saw Jürgen Klopp make his first appearance on the sideline as head coach, with the fixture against the Netherlands ending in a 1-1 draw. Behrens also had nothing but praise for the new national team head coach: “Jürgen Klopp is an amazing person because he takes everything on board and understands exactly how the players tick. That’s exactly what a team needs.”
Two more Nations League fixtures await Germany during the current international break. They will face Serbia in Munich on Thursday evening, before travelling to Thessaloniki on Sunday to play the reverse fixture against Greece. For Behrens, his time with the national team is over for now, as he, unlike FCA goalkeeper Finn Dahmen, was not selected for the team’s final two fixtures during the international break.
