Germany moved past the ill-fortuned Hansi Flick era as they picked up a friendly 2-1 victory over eternal rivals France at Signal Iduna Park.
As the host nation of next year’s European Championship tournament, Germany should be considered one of the favourites for a crack at the continental crown.
The three-time European champions looked nothing like world beaters under Flick’s leadership, but there seemed to be a glimmer of hope for a brighter future with Hannes Wolf at the helm.
Looking to end their abysmal form of four wins from their last 17 outings, Germany began the friendly tie on the front foot, and it paid off after just four minutes with Thomas Muller lashing home a cutback from Benjamin Henrichs.
Having taken an early initiative, Die Mannschaft kept their foot on the gas, and Serge Gnabry came close to doubling the lead inside ten minutes, but his curling effort sailed just wide.
Stunned by the early setback, France began to work their way back into the tie and controlled proceedings, but they failed to create any noteworthy chances.
Aurelien Tchouameni’s 39th-minute header was the closest France came to troubling Marc-Andre ter Stegen, and Germany saw off their European counterparts to head into the half-time interval with their lead intact.
France kicked off the second period in contrasting form as they did in the first by searching for the elusive leveller. Tchouameni came close, but his long-range effort couldn’t beat Ter Stegen.
Antoine Griezmann was next to test Ter Stegen in the Germany goal, but the Barcelona shot-stopper would not be beaten, denying the Atletico Madrid man from close range.
France’s forward surge in search of a goal eventually came at the expense of their defensive responsibilities, with the hosts pouring down the other end on the counter before Leroy Sane slotted past Mike Maignan to double Germany’s lead.
Perhaps caught up in the euphoria of his celebration, Sane soon became the villain, giving away a penalty on the other end, and Griezmann made no mistake from 12 yards.
While the spot-kick handed France a renewed sense of optimism about their chances of snatching a draw, their last-minute efforts proved futile as Germany held on to secure a morale-boosting victory on home soil.
Player Ratings
Germany
Marc-Andre ter Stegen (7/10) – Denied France several times with a handful of impressive saves and deserved a clean sheet.
Jonathan Tah (7/10) – Put in a solid defensive shift despite featuring in his secondary position.
Niklas Sule (6/10) – Played his part in limiting France’s attacking threat down the middle.
Antonio Rudiger (6/10) – Ensured Kolo Muani barely got a sniff at goal.
Benjamin Henrichs (7/10) – Was electric down the left flank and was good value for his assist, although struggled to cope with Coman defensively.
Emre Can (7/10) – An astute performance from the Borussia Dortmund man, proving a commanding presence in midfield.
Ilkay Gundogan (4/10) – Lasted just 25 minutes before being replaced, and Barcelona will hope he hasn’t suffered a long-term problem.
Leroy Sane (6/10) – A topsy-turvy performance from the Bayern Munich forward but ultimately proved to be the match-winner.
Florian Wirtz (6/10) – A solid display from the highly-rated attacking midfielder. Certainly justified his selection today.
Serge Gnabry (5/10) – Nothing spectacular from the Bayern winger, who struggled to make any telling contribution in attack.
Thomas Muller (7/10) – A talisman’s performance from the German legend. Took his goal with aplomb.
Substitutes
Pascal Gross (5/10)
Julian Brandt (5/10)
Kai Havertz (5/10)
Robin Gosens (NA)
Jonas Hofmann (NA)
France
Mike Maignan (4/10) – Not his best performance in a France shirt.
Theo Hernandez (6/10) – One of the better performers in a back four that struggled to inspire confidence.
William Saliba (4/10) – The Arsenal man struggled, especially in the early stages and looked sloppy in and out of possession
Jean-Clair Todibo (4/10) – Like his centre-back partner, Todibo, who was making his Les Bleus debut, looked nervy and uncertain at times. His sloppy pass led to Germany’s second goal.
Benjamin Pavard (5/10) – Stuggled to affect the game on his return to Germany.
Adrien Rabiot (5/10) – Nothing spectacular from the Juventus man who largely enjoyed a quiet game.
Eduardo Camavinga (7/10) – His partnership with Tchouameni in midfield bore fruit with the pair helping Les Bleus establish a foothold in the game.
Aurelien Tchouameni (8/10) – Held down the middle of the park with an outstanding performance and should have gotten a goal to show for his efforts.
Randal Kolo Muani (4/10) – Not a great audition for the new Paris Saint-Germain man. Was a spectator for most of the proceedings.
Antoine Griezmann (7/10) – Not his best performance for France, but pulled the strings for his side as per usual. Took his spot-kick with aplomb.
Kingsley Coman (7/10) – Was the brightspark for France. Looked dangerous every time he got on the ball and had Germany’s defenders retreating with his dribbling and flair.
Substitutes
Marcus Thuram (4/10)
Ousmane Dembele (5/10)
Jules Kounde (5/10)
Youssouf Fofana (5/10)
