A last-eight spot in the Nations League remains within reach for Jürgen Klopp’s side. In driving rain and a near-deserted Rajko Mitic Stadium in Belgrade, they beat Serbia 3-1 on Friday night. UEFA had barred home supporters after earlier racist and discriminatory behaviour, so only about 5,000 local schoolchildren and some 200 visiting fans watched.
The game was effectively settled inside a quarter of an hour. Barely three minutes in, Kai Havertz headed a corner goalwards and it went in off defender Srdjan Babic. On 14 minutes Havertz was denied by goalkeeper Vanja Milinkovic-Savic, but Florian Wirtz pounced on the rebound. Germany controlled almost four-fifths of the ball and fired 22 shots over the evening.
Best of all was a goal from a newcomer. RB Leipzig winger Brajan Gruda collected possession near halfway soon after the restart, ran at and past several defenders and drove a low shot into the corner for 3-0. Babic made partial amends with a close-range finish after Marc-André ter Stegen parried a shot into his path, and Derry Scherhant later struck the post. Serbia ended with nine men: substitute Vanja Dragojevic was sent off after a VAR check on a heavy tackle on Joshua Kimmich, and Andrija Zivkovic followed for dissent near the end. Niclas Füllkrug returned to international football as a late replacement.
Klopp told broadcaster RTL his team had played “a truly fantastic game” and needed to accept that they are genuinely good. Five matches into his tenure, the record stands at two wins, two draws and one defeat.
The equation for Monday is now simple. With the Netherlands thrashing Greece 7-0, Germany will almost certainly have to beat the Dutch in Berlin on November 16 to reach the last eight. Serbia have now lost five in a row and can no longer climb off the foot of the table.
