What a crazy finish this was for Germany in FIFA World Cup 2026 . One moment they were staring at very uncomfortable result against Ivory Coast,and next moment Deniz Undav came in and completely changed mood of match .
Match was held on June 20 and honestly,it had proper rollercoaster feeling . Germany started brightly,Kai Havertz almost gave them early lead but narrowly missed target . Then Aleksandar Pavlovic also had goal disallowed due to foul,and from there frustration started showing.
And then Ivory Coast punished them. Franck Kessie scored from close range in first-half and suddenly Elephants were ahead 1-0 . For Germany,four-time world champions,this was not small pressure ah .
But second half changed after coach Julian Nagelsmann brought on Deniz Undav and Nadiem Amiri . That substitution call worked big time because Germany suddenly looked sharper,more direct and more alive in final third .
Few things standing out from this match:
- Deniz Undav scored twice as Germany won 2-1 against Ivory Coast.
- Franck Kessie had put Ivory Coast ahead with first-half goal.
- Germany now await result of Curaçao vs Ecuador for group standings .
Undav equalized in 68th minute with well-timed header from Nadiem Amiri cross . That goal felt like Germany finally breathing again after long period of irritation and missed chances .
And then came stoppage time drama. In the 94th minute,Lukas Nmecha played brilliant through ball and Undav finished calmly to make it 2-1 . German fans obviously went mad because this goal also secured their progression to knockout stage.
Tbh,this is why substitutes matter so much in big matches . Sometimes one change is enough to flip whole story,and here Undav did that properly only .
Still,Germany will know this was not perfect performance . They fought back,yes,but going behind first and depending on 94th minute winner is risky business in tournament football… what happens when next opponent does not allow comeback like this?
