Overview
- Germany secured a 3-1 win in Belgrade on Friday after an early own goal from Srdjan Babic, a Florian Wirtz strike and a second-half finish from debutant Brajan Gruda.
- The match turned decisively when Serbia were reduced to nine men following a straight red for Vanja Dragojevic for a foul on Joshua Kimmich and a later sending-off for Andrija Zivkovic.
- Jürgen Klopp started Malick Thiaw ahead of Nico Schlotterbeck to combat long balls and the team dominated possession for long spells, controlling the game in poor weather and a restricted crowd set by UEFA.
- Gruda’s eye-catching debut and Niclas Füllkrug’s return to the squad were the standout personnel notes from the game and underline Klopp’s selection experiments as he reshapes the side.
- Separately, Bayern prospect Cassiano Kiala left Germany U19’s qualifier in Portugal injured on 12 November and his condition remains under assessment while Germany now prepares for the deciding match in Berlin on Monday.