Germany vs Ghana: Black stars lose 4th straight match before World Cup

Deniz Undav came off the bench to deliver a dramatic late match-winner, rescuing a hard-fought 2-1 victory for Germany over a much-improved Ghana side in their international friendly clash.

The defeat marked Ghana's fourth straight loss in preparatory friendlies ahead of the Summer World Cup, but they showed marked improvement from the side thrashed 5-1 by Austria in Vienna.

The hosts dictated the tempo from the opening whistle, monopolising possession as they slowly probed Ghana’s defensive block. 

The Black Stars struggled to escape their own half, but their rigid shape frustrated the German attackers. Germany nearly opened the scoring midway through the first half when Florian Wirtz, fresh off a spectacular two-goal, two-assist masterclass against Switzerland, unleashed a powerful strike that rattled the crossbar.

The breakthrough finally arrived in the dying moments of the first half. In the 44th minute, Ghanaian defender Jonas Adjetey was penalised for a handball inside the penalty area. 

Consequently, the referee pointed to the spot, and Kai Havertz stepped up to the spot deep into first-half stoppage time and coolly converted the penalty, sending a left-footed shot into the bottom corner past Benjamin Asare to give Germany a 1-0 advantage at the interval.

Seeking to test his squad depth, Nagelsmann made a triple substitution at halftime, introducing Deniz Undav, Lennart Karl, and Antonio Rüdiger to replace Serge Gnabry, Havertz, and Jonathan Tah. 

He made another host of changes around the hour mark; hence, possibly as a consequence, the second half saw a drop in Germany's attacking intensity.

Ghana also stepped up their duelling and industry, efforts which paid off spectacularly in the 80th minute. Capitalising on a rare lapse in the German defence, Issahaku Fatawu produced a brilliant reaction and finish to equalise the match at 1-1, stunning the home crowd at the MHPArena and setting up a frantic finale. 

Stung by the equaliser, Germany aggressively threw bodies forward in search of a winner. In the closing stages of the match, substitute Deniz Undav proved to be the hero, finding the back of the net with a fantastic finish to restore Germany's lead and seal the 2-1 victory.