Six wins from six games – no national coach started better than Hansi Flick. However, his clear record (9:0 against Liechtenstein) began with a brief shock.
The beautiful scene, world champion coach Joachim Löw was given a ceremonial farewell before kick-off, was quickly followed by a frightening one: After eight minutes, with the score at 0-0, the substitute Liechtensteiner Hofer hit Goretzka on the neck with an open sole in the penalty area. Good news for Germany: Gündogan converted the crystal-clear penalty for the early lead (11th), Goretzka was able to continue playing. And Hofer saw a justified red.
Three goals in four minutes
The already dominant home side, who Flick fielded in a kind of 4-2-4 with the forward line of Baku, Müller, Reus and Sané – Freiburg’s Günter was allowed to play at left back – became even more oppressive when they were outplayed. And Liechtenstein could not withstand the pressure: an own goal by Kaufmann (20th), Sané’s well-placed left-footed shot (22nd) and Reus’ tap-in (23rd) resulted in three German goals within just four minutes.
The great sporting significance – Germany had already qualified for the World Cup, Liechtenstein no longer had this chance – was definitely absent from the first competitive match of the DFB team in Wolfsburg, so the favourites took their foot off the gas after the 4:0. In addition, the visitors changed defensively, they were now closer to their opponents – nevertheless, Sané in particular could have increased the lead before the break.
Nmecha makes debut but only hits the post
Under the guidance of Ivana Martincic, the first female referee to officiate an international match for the German men’s national team, Flick’s charges shifted up a gear after the restart. After his missed double chance (48th), Reus set up Sané to make it 5-0 (49th), and substitute Nmecha from Wolfsburg – making his international debut – hit the post with a direct shot (56th).
However, Liechtenstein’s goalkeeper Büchel, who was in good form despite all the goals conceded, was far from over. Numerous saves by the keeper did nothing to change the fact that Germany really got into the mood in the final phase. After a corner, Müller pushed Neuhaus’ header over the line – the half dozen was full (76th).
Shortly before the end, a double-digit result was even in the air. Wolfsburg’s Baku scored an absolute dream goal with a flick right into the corner of the cross (80th), before Müller countered that a little: His deflected follow-up sank off the lower edge of the crossbar over the line (86th). Even more curious was the second own goal of the evening – Göppel’s header arcing over the pitiful Büchel (89th), which prevented Nmecha’s debut goal as well as double figures (90th).
With the sixth win in the sixth match, Hansi Flick has started better than any national coach before him. The DFB team will play their last qualifier in Armenia on Sunday.
