European giant Germany struggles to beat 75th-ranked Oman in a friendly

Debantant Fullkrug was the hero for the Die Mannschaft.

Qatar 2022 European giant Germany struggles to beat 75th-ranked Oman in a friendly

Izuchukwu Akawor 20:55 - 16.11.2022

The Germans are one of the tournament's favourites but had their blushes saved late on by a debutant in Muscat.

Former World Champions Germany have completed their World Cup preparation following a hard-fought win over Oman on Wednesday evening.

Germany defeated their gallant hosts with a narrow 1-0 scoreline at the Sultan Qabos Sports Complex in Muscat.

The only goal of the encounter came in the first final 10 minutes of the game from Werder Bremen star Niclas Fullkrug.

Germany was not at its best against Oman.

Germany was without the duo of Thomas Muller, Antonio Rudiger and goalkeeper, Marc-Andre ter Stegen, but that was not an excuse for poor performance.

Head Coach, Hansi Flick, will be grateful to Fullkrug, who saved their blushes with that decisive late goal.

Moukoko makes full debut, history

17-year-old Borussia Dortmund wunderkind Youssoufa Moukoko was handed his first full international debut as he led the German line from start.

History maker, Moukoko.

However, Moukoko, who turns 18 on Sunday when the World Cup kicks off, came closest to breaking the deadlock in the first half when his effort came off the post just before the break.

With his appearance against Oman, the German-born superstar of Cameroonian descent became the youngest debutant for Germany since 1954.

https://twitter.com/DFB_Team_EN/status/1592961988086333441?s=20&t=WmRFeWAsbZ9kA0uZ8cKfQw

Fullkrug nets debut goal

In what can be described as a game for debutants, Fullkrug was another player who made his international debut against Oman.

Fullkrug scores the winning goal.

The Bremen forward replaced Moukoko at halftime and went on to net the game's only goal to give Die Mannschaft a winning momentum heading into the tournament proper.

Fullkrug thought he had doubled the advantage a few minutes later when he had the ball in the net again but it would be ruled out for offside.

Summary

This performance wasn't one expected from one of the pre-tournament favourites at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Hansi and his Die Mannschaft will have to raise their game a notch if they want to make a better impact in Qatar.

Germany will compete in Group E in Qatar 2022 alongside Spain, Japan, and Costa Rica. They will kick off the competition against Japan next Wednesday.

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