Germany suffers shocking defeat, ranks bottom of Group A of World Cup qualifiers

Florian Wirtz holds his head after Germany's defeat.

David Hancko and David Strelec took advantage of mistakes in the German defense to give Slovakia the advantage in the 42nd and 55th minutes. Throughout the match, the German team could not find a way to penetrate the opponent's solid defense to level the score.

This is a big blow for coach Julian Nagelsmann and his squad, which is in the process of being renewed. Germany will have the presence of Newcastle new signing Nick Woltemade (in his third appearance for Germany) and 21-year-old right-back Nnamdi Collins, who has just made his debut.

Nagelsmann was harshly critical of his players, saying they lacked “emotion” on the pitch and the desire to win against an underdog but passionate opponent. He even questioned whether less technically gifted players should be selected but who were dedicated. Nagelsmann stressed that Germany must win all five remaining matches to avoid the play-offs.

Germany, including West Germany's Cold War record, have appeared in every World Cup since 1954. Before this match, they had lost just three World Cup qualifiers, all of which were at home.

Germany appeared to be so confident of qualifying directly from a group that was supposed to be relatively easy, with Slovakia, Northern Ireland and Luxembourg, that they scheduled a friendly before they were certain of qualification.

On Thursday, the German Football Association announced that it would play a friendly against Ivory Coast in March 2026, “in the event of a direct qualification for the World Cup.” However, this would coincide with the play-offs for the runners-up in the group.

Germany is currently at the bottom of Group A with 0 points. Leading the way are Northern Ireland and Slovakia with 3 points each. Luxembourg also has 0 points but is above Germany thanks to a goal difference of 1/3 (compared to 0/2).

Source: https://znews.vn/duc-thua-soc-xep-chot-bang-a-vong-loai-world-cup-post1582616.html