With the pressure on after drawing with Ukraine and losing to Poland, Germany failed once again in their friendly with Colombia at the Veltins Arena going down to a 2-0 defeat.
The pressure will now only ramp up on a beleaguered Hansi Flick, who saw his side concede second half goals to Luis Diaz and Juan Cuadrado (penalty). Germany were harmless in attack and uncertain at the back and their negative run continues, which doesn’t bode well for next summer’s European Championships.
Marc-Andre Ter Stegen- 4
Made one very good save to deny Mina in the first half, but was helpless to keep out either of the goals. He was busier than he expected to be and even had to deal with climate protesters. His distribution was not on point.
Malick Thiaw- 3
One of Germany’s more impressive performers in the first half and his monster tackle on Luis Diaz on the half hour mark was his stand-out moment. Poor positioning for the opening goal, but a respectable performance in only his second appearance.
Emre Can- 5
The Dortmund man was chosen to be the central member of the back three. Played too many misplaced passes and seemed to lack the required focus. His loss of possession contributed in part to the opening goal and he was later moved into a more familiar defensive midfield role.
Antonio Rüdiger- 4
He had Malick Thiaw to thank for digging him out of an almighty hole when his poor pass let in Luis Diaz in the first half. He didn’t look all that comfortable with the back three and didn’t show the command you would expect.
Marius Wolf-5
Wolf started as the right wingback , but was wholly ineffective going forward and equally wanting when it came to his defensive duties. Even though Germany predominantly favoured the left side, he was deservedly replaced at half time.
Robin Gosens- 3
Much more involved in the game on the left than Wolf was on the right. He delivered a few dangerous crosses, but overall there was a lack of precision. Slightly at fault for the first goal allowing Juan Cuadrado too much space to cross.
Leon Goretzka- 4
Took on the defensive role in midfield after not starting the defeat to Poland. While quite involved in the duels, he had very little involvement or contribution going forward.
Ilkay Gündogan- 4
In the absence of Joshua Kimmich the treble winner with Manchester City captained the side. He took on the more offensive role alongside Goretzka but seemed to lake the inspiration against a lively Colombian side. This was not a performance that we’ve seen him display so successfully at club level.
Leroy Sané- 5
This was sadly another international display where Leroy Sané went missing for Germany and his involvement in the attacking third was minimal. The fact that his one stand-out moment came from tracking back to tackle a counter attack says a lot.
Jamal Musiala-3
He was forced to be a little more defensive in the opening phase of the game, but in an advanced number eight role he created Germany’s only real chance of the first half. He was named Germany’s international of the year prior to kick-off, but he cannot carry this side by himself.
Kai Havertz-5
Chosen again ahead of Niclas Füllkrug to lead the attack, Havertz once again didn’t inspire much confidence and too often made the wrong decision. He found it difficult to find the required space to get his shots away. Replaced by Julian Brandt in the 79th minute.
Subs:
Benjamin Henrichs- 5
He replace the ineffective Marius Wolf at half time, but didn’t provide the desired improvement. His handball led to the Colombian penalty that made it 2-0 and overall nothing to write home about.
Niclas Füllkrug- n/a
Came on in the 66th minute for Emre Can and put himself about but failed to have a single chance. Got a yellow card for his efforts, but not much else.
Joshua Kimmich- n/a
Came on for Gündogan in the last ten minutes, but it was too late to be able to rescue the situation.
Julian Brandt- n/a
Like Kimmich, came on too late to be able to influence the game after replacing Kai Havertz.
