Germany crushed Finland 4-0 in Mainz on Sunday night, using the friendly as a live-fire rehearsal for Julian Nagelsmann’s reshaped attack and underlining how quickly Deniz Undav has elbowed his way into the squad conversation.
Nagelsmann persisted with the 4-2-3-1 shape introduced in camp and saw it pay off in the 34th minute when Joshua Kimmich zipped a pass into Undav for the Stuttgart forward to roll beyond Lukáš Hrádecký. The sequence again highlighted Kimmich’s influence from right back, with Aleksandar Pavlović anchoring the double pivot.
Germany accelerated after the interval. In the 48th minute Undav turned provider for Florian Wirtz, who punished Finland’s stretched block before head coach Jacob Friis could reorganise. Any hope the visitors had of stabilising vanished nine minutes later, when Lennart Karl slipped a neat ball into Undav for his second goal at 57 minutes.
Finland answered with a triple substitution on 58 minutes, introducing Joel Pohjanpalo, Daniel Håkans, and Oliver Antman, but Germany’s rhythm stayed intact. Jamal Musiala capped the scoring in the 63rd minute, finishing after Pavlović stepped into space and threaded the assist. Nagelsmann could then afford to withdraw Undav in the 61st minute before rotating further with Leroy Sané and Nick Woltemade replacing Karl and Wirtz on 73 minutes.
The structural contrast was stark. Germany’s 4-2-3-1 suffocated Finland’s 4-3-3, with Kimmich and Nathaniel Brown pinning the visiting wingers so Pavlović and Karl could dictate tempo from deep. Wirtz and Musiala kept swapping lanes, dragging Ville Koski and Tony Miettinen into awkward decisions. Friis’s midfield trio chased shadows, leaving the starting striker isolated long before Pohjanpalo entered.
Undav will take the headlines with two goals and an assist, but the service around him mattered just as much. Pavlović attempted 109 passes, completing 104 for a 95 percent success rate, and still found the incision that set up Musiala. Karl justified his inclusion by creating Germany’s third, while Kimmich led Germany with 97 attempted passes, completing 89 to go with his assist for the opener. Even without a save to make, Oliver Baumann kept the back line calm as Jonathan Tah and Nico Schlotterbeck marshalled Finland’s rare forays.
Finland were grateful to Hrádecký, whose six saves and late claim under pressure kept the scoreline tolerable. The numbers told the story: zero shots on target for the visitors and only one attempt inside the German box. Friis rotated again in the 73rd minute with Miro Tenho and Samuli Miettinen, then summoned Naatan Skyttä at 79, but his side never gained a foothold.
Key statistics
- Possession: Germany 65%, Finland 35%
- Shots: Germany 22 (12 on target), Finland 7 (0 on target)
- Corners: Germany 10, Finland 3
- Pass accuracy: Germany 92%, Finland 85%
Germany head back to camp with confidence and a clearer attacking hierarchy, while Friis must find solutions before Finland’s next assignment in this window. Keep an eye on the broader international slate with our coverage of Brazil vs Panama and tomorrow’s Match Snapshot.
