Second World Cup duel for Germany
The Leipzig express train must be braked
June 20, 2026 – 1:50 p.mReading time: 4 minutes
After the spectacular start of the World Cup against Curaçao, the German team faces a much trickier opponent in the second game – with a star who is reminiscent of a former Bayern professional.
Out of Toronto reports William Laing
Six days after the exhilarating 7-1 win over Curaçao at the start of the World Cup German national team before reaching their first stage goal at the tournament in the USA, Canada and Mexico. In the second group game against the Ivory Coast, the DFB team could achieve what it last achieved when winning the title in 2014: getting into the knockout round World Cup. But the task on Saturday in Toronto, Canada (from 10 p.m. in Live ticker at t-online) will inevitably be more difficult than the opening match in Houston.
For the WM Ivory Coast qualified without conceding a single goal in ten games. Simply cracking the West Africans’ defense will probably be a Sisyphean task for the German team. Attested on Friday Julian Nagelsmann At the final press conference before the game, the two central midfielders Seko Fofana and Franck Kessié in particular showed “brutal physicality that can cause problems for us.” But the biggest concern for the national coach is the attack department of the upcoming opponent.
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Defender Antonio Rüdiger already spoke in awe of the Ivory Coast attackers during the week. “These are express trains,” said the professional from real Madrid in the DFB headquarters in Winston-Salem and explained directly what he meant by that. “They love one-on-one and counterattacks. We have to be prepared to avoid that.” The route for the German selection for the second World Cup duel has been clear for several days: In order to reach the round of 16, the express trains must be slowed down – primarily those from Leipzig.
Diomande and the parallel to Coman
The Ivory Coast has numerous aspiring young professionals in its ranks with a lot of development potential. But Yan Diomande is by far the biggest talent in the Ivorian squad. 20 million euros transferred RB Leipzig in the summer of 2025 to the Spanish club CD Leganés for the services of the just 19-year-old. An investment that has paid off completely for the Saxons. Because: Diomande advanced in the Bundesliga became a whiz kid within a very short time and increased his market value from 1.5 to 90 million euros in his first season in Germany.
Several top clubs are therefore already interested in him. The Liverpool FC The pay-TV broadcaster Sky recently reported that they had already made an initial offer of more than 100 million euros for Diomande. The “Reds” are said to have received a rejection from Leipzig. However, it is no coincidence that the Premier League club is prepared to pay a three-digit million sum for the young offensive artist.