23.
22:23
Benitez sends the teams into the first drinking break after Schlotterbeck undercuts a pass out of bounds. The first phase of the game is over, Germany started the game well and had some good opportunities.
21.
22:21
This corner is extremely dangerous! Germany leads briefly, Kimmich then crosses sharply into the center. There Pavlovic goes into an aerial duel with goalkeeper Fofana and heads in. But referee Benitez blew his whistle: Pavlovic’s robust effort was too much for him.
20.
22:21
F. Nmecha (GER) with second row finish
20.
10:20 p.m
Good counter-pressing from the DFB team, which puts Nmecha in position. The midfielder finishes quickly, with a defensive leg in between. Corner for Germany.
19.
22:18
In the DFB team, a lot goes to the left. Again Wirtz cleverly passes through to Brown, who again has some space in front of him. The left-back then wants to use Havertz in the penalty area, but the pass ends up being a little too long.
17.
22:18
J. Musiala (GER) misses the goal from distance
17.
22:17
Musiala! After a one-two with Pavlovic, the central offensive man has some space and uses it to finish from distance towards the far corner. Just over.
16.
22:16
Germany can outplay Ivory Coast’s pressing. Wirtz sends Brown, who uses his speed and makes meters to the left. But his pass towards Sané is then intercepted.
14.
22:14
Schlotterbeck is back on the pitch and continues to play – at least for now. The Ivorians were unable to take advantage of their brief majority, but they did record a longer period of possession for the first time.
13.
22:13
Schlotterbeck is sitting on the pitch for the second time and apparently has problems with his ankle after a duel. The DFB staff are with him on the pitch.
12.
22:12
Shot blocked by W. Singo (CIV).
12.
10:10 p.m
Again the Ivory Coast comes from the left, Germany has to be very careful. Diomande is involved again and he crosses Konan. Brown doesn’t clear his cross sufficiently, but Singo’s following shot is blocked by the DFB defense.
10.
10:10 p.m
K. Havertz (GER) with the first chance
10.
22:09
First big chance of the game! Kimmich hits one of his precise half-court crosses dangerously into the center. Havertz rises up and heads the ball – half with his shoulder – towards the far corner. Fofana in the Ivorian goal dives and makes a strong save.
9.
22:08
Havertz wants to pass a cross from Brown to Wirtz, but a defensive leg is just in between on the edge of the penalty area. That could have been dangerous.
7.
10:05 p.m
Bonny and Diomande are fueling themselves on the left offensive side – Kimmich and Co. already have a lot of work to do there. At the end of the attack, Bonny hits a cross, but it is too long. No danger for Neuer in the DFB goal.
5.
10:04 p.m
Germany is – as was to be expected – trying to control the game. In the early stages, however, a few mistakes crept into the DFB team’s passing game.
3.
22:02
Ivory Coast wins the ball. Bonny drives the ball forward and inserts Diomande on the left. This is the first meeting between the Ivorian starting player and right-back Kimmich. As a group, Germany gets the situation clarified.
1.
22:01
This is the first good chance for the DFB team. Havertz passes a long ball to Wirtz, who immediately uses the center forward again. Havertz puts the ball clearly over the goal – but that was a good move by the Germans after 20 seconds.
1.
22:01
The ball is rolling, things start on time in Toronto. Germany plays in white, Ivory Coast plays in orange as usual. Will Germany already make it to the round of 16 today? We’ll know more shortly.
1.
10:00 p.m
Game start
9:56 p.m
The national anthems are played. Kickoff is getting closer and closer here in Toronto.
9:52 p.m
The referee today is Juan Gabriel Benitez from Paraguay. The 43-year-old will be supported on the sidelines by his compatriots Eduardo Cardozo and Milciades Saldivar. Khalid Alturais (Saudi Arabia) is the fourth official. Among other things, Benitez was in action at the Copa America in 2024, and at the Club World Cup last year he refereed the group game between Borussia Dortmund and Mamelodi Sundowns from South Africa (4:3).
9:45 p.m
A word about the weather: The conditions are almost perfect at around 22 degrees shortly before 4 p.m. in Toronto. It’s sunny, nice football weather. Everything is ready for a nice game!
9:41 p.m
The players go into the dressing rooms and the countdown to kick-off begins. Many free seats can no longer be seen in the stadium. The obligatory presentation of the flags on the square will follow shortly.
9:30 p.m
Warming up is now underway. The look at the players’ faces shows exactly what you would expect given the importance of this game: focus and concentration. There isn’t much talk anymore – at least not among the players in the first eleven. With the substitutes around Woltemade, Undav and Co. things look much more relaxed.
9:26 p.m
This quality is also reflected in the fact that Faé can bring in several new players at once. In addition to Diallo, ex-Leverkusen player Odilon Kossounou is also moving into the team – right-back Guela Doué has to go on the bench for him.
9:21 p.m
Qualifying for the World Cup went largely smoothly for Ivory Coast. The defense was particularly convincing; we survived all ten games without conceding a goal. And the World Cup friendly matches also went well for the Ivorians: on June 4th, the Africans celebrated a 2-1 away win against World Cup favorites France. In March, South Korea was beaten 4-0 and Scotland 1-0. So the impression is not misleading: this team has quality.
9:15 p.m
In their previous three participations in 2006, 2010 and 2014, the West Africans had only won one game and had to give up after the preliminary round. Now they can approach the top game against Germany relatively relaxed, possibly an advantage for the Ivorians.
9:13 p.m
The hard-fought 1-0 win against strong Ecuadorians was an extremely important success for Ivory Coast. Three points in the account, plus the last group game against underdog Curacao in hand – the prospects for the knockout round are excellent.
9:08 p.m
The only direct duel between Germany and Ivory Coast to date ended in a 2-2 draw in November 2009. A certain Manuel Neuer played his second international match in his home town of Schalke. He came on as a substitute for Tim Wiese at half-time and conceded both goals. Neuer – now 40 years old – will also be guarding the DFB goal today.
20:58
By the way, the teams are already in the stadium and have completed the field inspection. It’s now time for the final game preparations in the dressing room before the warm-up for the game begins. Meanwhile, the stadium is slowly filling up. Several thousand Germany fans joined the fan march from the city center.
20:51
Elye Wahi is not in the starting line-up. The striker has been in the headlines in recent days because, according to “The Athletic”, an investigation is underway against the 23-year-old “on suspicion of organized fraud, organized corruption in sport, receiving stolen property and money laundering”. After Wahi was initially denied entry into Canada, he was finally allowed to cross the border. Wahi is in the squad and could get minutes as a joker.
8:47 p.m
No change in the DFB team – but surprisingly, five in the Ivory Coast. Coach Emerse Faé brings in Amad Diallo, the winning goal scorer against Ecuador, among others.
8:34 p.m
The lineup is here! As expected, national coach Julian Nagelsmann does not change his team compared to Curacao. This also means: Leroy Sané, who is sometimes harshly criticized, is starting again. Kai Havertz is storming again, behind him Jamal Musiala and Florian Wirtz are said to be swirling alongside Sané.
8:33 p.m
The Ivorians won the opening game against Ecuador 1-0 and showed what makes them strong: a stable, physically strong defense, plus fast offensive players who can create moments at any time. First and foremost, there is of course Leipzig’s Yan Diomande, who at 19 is already the star of the team.
20:21
The 7-1 opening win against Curacao put the DFB team in a good mood. No wonder, after the two failed World Cups in 2018 and 2022, it looks like we’ll be able to reach the knockout rounds again for the first time. But be careful: today’s opponent is a lot stronger than Curacao.
8:16 p.m
Today’s game takes place in Toronto, Canada. Kick-off is locally at 4 p.m., in Germany the game starts at 10 p.m. due to the time difference.
8:07 p.m
Welcome to the DFB team’s second World Cup group game. Germany’s game against Ivory Coast will begin in just under two hours. The most important thing first: With a win, Germany will be in the knockout round as group winners and their first goal would be achieved.