The magical triangle eclipses Kimmich, the lineup shines
In the stadium in Belgrade, one could see the second German squad, which, thanks to a magical triangle of Pavlovic, Bischof and Wirtz, gained the upper hand. While Joshua Kimmich barely made an impact in midfield, the three celebrated a convincing 2:0 in the qualifier against Serbia.
When the two German squads were presented, the DFB selection for the first two matches appeared stronger than the one for the last two fixtures. Only Aleksandar Pavlovic and Florian Wirtz were listed as clear regulars for the matches against Serbia and Greece. However, that impression did not match the later performance on the pitch.
Expectations vs Reality
The initially prominent squad scored only a lucky goal in the Netherlands and lost the game against Greece. In contrast, the second selection won a convincing 2:0 against Serbia. The team appeared markedly more confident and stronger in play.
Midfield Triangle Dominates
At the heart of the success was the midfield triangle of Aleksandar Pavlovic (six), Tom Bischof (eight) and Florian Wirtz (ten). Pavlovic acted as a ball magnet, pulling the strings and distributing the balls precisely. Bischof repeatedly delivered good through balls and became a goal threat himself. Wirtz felt completely at ease in the role and was involved in almost every dangerous situation.
The pure footballing class of this trio has led to Germany being able to dominate the midfield completely.
Klopp’s opening FIFA window splits fortunes as Wirtz shines and Kimmich falters
Kimmich and Co. Fall Behind
In the counterpart, Joshua Kimmich, Felix Nmecha and Nadiem Amiri/Bambasé Conté could hardly develop combinations. Practically no coordination took place and the ball‑less play appeared markedly more static. Kimmich and co. did deliver many passes, but without increasing the tempo or achieving significant space gain.
On the flanks, Karim Adeyemi together with Kevin Schade added a lot of pace to the attack, repeatedly creating danger, but they lost numerous balls and could not contribute as hoped. The two therefore displayed clear shortcomings. Adeyemi and Schade lost many balls and could not involve themselves as well as was probably expected.
In contrast, Derry Scherhant and Serge Gnabry delivered a more mature performance. Both were well integrated into the game, found the right balance between safety and risk and kept the German attack going, while becoming goal threats themselves. Scherhant and Gnabry found the right dosage between safety and risk, kept the German attack running and repeatedly became goal threats themselves.
The interplay of the central triangle made the second German squad considerably more attractive and showed why it shaped the games against Serbia and Greece more convincingly than the initially favored lineup. The second squad completely dominated the midfield.