Germany player ratings vs Slovakia

Full Germany player ratings from Thursday’s World Cup qualifier against Slovakia.

On a night to forget for the German national team, Julian Nagelsmann’s side opened their World Cup qualifying campaign with a disappointing 2-0 defeat to Slovakia in Bratislava.

Here are our German player ratings from the game:

Germany Starting XI Player Ratings

GK: Oliver Baumann – 6/10
The Hoffenheim goalkeeper made three saves in total, including a solid stop in the first half, but was powerless to prevent either of Slovakia’s goals. Made a well-timed double tackle in the second half.

RB: Nnamdi Collins – 2/10
With Joshua Kimmich deployed in a central midfield role, Collins made his Germany debut at right-back – and it was far from a memorable evening for the youngster. The ball was repeatedly played in behind the Eintracht Frankfurt defender, and he struggled to contain Slovakia’s Leo Sauer. By half-time, Collins had been taken off – a substitution that felt inevitable.

CB: Antonio Rüdiger – 3/10
Successfully distributed a number of balls forward, but otherwise had a very difficult evening. He appeared slow both in thought and action, lost track of David Hancko for the home side’s opener, and failed to stop David Strelec in a one-on-one after the break, allowing the second goal.

CB: Jonathan Tah – 4/10
Tah won most of his duels and was reliable in possession, but he also struggled at times – particularly in the second half – and was part of a German defense that appeared disorganized in several situations and gave the Slovakians too much space.

LB: Maximilian Mittelstädt – 5/10
The Stuttgart left-back was quite involved going forward in the first half, linking up well with Florian Wirtz and a number of promising crosses, but was less eye-catching after the break.

DM: Joshua Kimmich – 5/10
The German captain dropped back frequently to distribute the ball, completing nearly all of his passes. However, he was less decisive going forward than usual and failed to create any meaningful chances in the final third.

DM: Angelo Stiller – 4/10
Stuttgart’s reliable playmaker was substituted just past the hour mark after a quiet evening with little influence. He completed 92 percent of his passes but rarely dictated play, with Joshua Kimmich more often given the ball to orchestrate the midfield.

CAM: Leon Goretzka – 4/10
Playing in a more advanced role than usual, Goretzka was largely anonymous. He had very little involvement on the ball, with his only notable contribution coming just after the break, when he took a shot at goal following a good first touch.

RW: Serge Gnabry – 3/10
The winger showed a commendable attitude tracking back defensively, but struggled to make an impact going forward. Rarely made the most of he situations he was involved in, and despite his strong start to the season with Bayern, he seemed a touch short on confidence and was eventually subbed off in the 65th minute.

LW: Florian Wirtz – 6/10
Germany’s only real creative spark of the evening, Wirtz provided three key passes and nearly scored following a brilliant solo run in the first half. However, he also lost the ball leading up to the home side’s opener and, rather than tracking back, got involved in an argument with a Slovakian player. He appeared frustrated for large parts of the game – and understandably so.

ST: Nick Woltemade – 4/10
Woltemade started brightly, providing a clever backheel pass to Leon Goretzka, but it proved to be a frustrating evening for Newcastle’s new signing. He struggled to capitalize on the crosses that came his way and lost possession too often.

Substitutes

David Raum (for Nnamdi Collins, 46′) – 4/10

Nadiem Amiri (for Angelo Stiller ’59) – 4/10

Karim Adeyemi (for Serge Gnabry ’65) – N/A

Only players who featured for at least 30 minutes were rated.