Georgia 0-2 Germany: A hard-fought victory

The reigning world champions did not easily defeat their opponent, ranked 126th in FIFA, in the Euro 2016 qualifying match on the evening of March 29th.

A Georgia player blocks Muller's dribble. Photo: Reuters.

Germany's two goals came in quick succession towards the end of the first half. Marco Reus opened the scoring in the 39th minute before Thomas Muller sealed the 2-0 victory in the 44th minute.

This victory didn't put Germany at the top of Group D, but they are now just one point behind Poland. Group leaders Poland drew 1-1 away against the Republic of Ireland, conceding a late equalizer to Shane Long in the 90th minute.

In Group D, Scotland has 10 points, the same as Germany, but is in third place due to an inferior head-to-head record.

With the battle for the top two spots in Group D being very close, Germany understood that they had to win their trip to Tbilisi. The 125-place difference in the FIFA rankings somewhat reflects the disparity in skill between the two sides, but that doesn't mean Georgia will give Germany an easy evening.

Georgia started the match with difficulty when captain Alexander Amisulashvili had to leave the field in the fourth minute due to injury. Despite this, Georgia maintained a good game against Germany. The home team played with a large number of defenders but did not retreat into a defensive posture. Georgia confidently controlled possession against the reigning world champions and launched attacks whenever possible. This helped to relieve some of the pressure that the German players put on their defense for much of the match.

Germany won thanks to their class and cool-headedness in capitalizing on opportunities. Photo: Reuters.

Germany dominated possession, but Joachim Low's men struggled against a disciplined, numerous Georgian defense. The Georgian defenders maintained excellent spacing and quickly closed down whenever Germany approached the penalty area. This left even technically gifted stars like Marco Reus, Mario Gotze, and Ozil helpless due to a lack of space to maneuver.

Both of Germany's goals demonstrated the tightness of Georgia's defense. Marco Reus and Thomas Muller both had to react quickly to shots inside the penalty area after scrambles of balls before the home defenders could pounce on them.

Marco Reus could have scored a hat-trick in this match if he hadn't been denied by the crossbar twice, at the beginning of the first half and in the middle of the second. These were also Germany's most dangerous chances besides the two goals.

Starting lineup

Georgia (5-4-1):Loria: Lobzhanidze, Kverkvelia, Amisulashvili, Kashia, Navalovski; Kobakhidze, Kankava, Makharadze, Okriashvili; Mchedlidze.

Germany (4-2-3-1):Neuer; Rudy, Boateng, Hummels, Hector; Schweinsteiger, Kroos; Muller, Ozil, Reus; Gotze.

Goal:Reus (39'), Müller (44')

According to VNE