Germany secured their first win under new coach Juergen Klopp on Thursday with a 2-0 Nations League victory over Serbia, while Ronaldo-less Portugal beat Denmark 4-2.
Germany end wait for Klopp win
Klopp made major changes to the Germany team that lost to Greece in their last game.
He named a completely new starting XI for the match. Goalkeeper Jonas Urbig and winger Derry Scherhant also made their international debuts.
Germany attacked in waves but had to wait until the 39th minute to take the lead.
Florian Wirtz picked out Tom Bischof, who scored his first senior international goal in only his second cap.
Nick Woltemade then missed a clear chance at the back post.
Wirtz made up for the miss shortly after the hour mark. He found the net with a neat finish from the edge of the box.
The win will come as a relief to Klopp. It was his first victory at the third attempt since returning to coaching.
“We played great against the ball and played wonderful football with the ball. I am really happy. This performance must now be the baseline,” he said.
Portugal win without Ronaldo
Portugal also secured a key Nations League win despite the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo.
The match was Portugal’s first since Ronaldo missed the squad amid uncertainty over his international future.
Joao Cancelo put Portugal ahead in the first half. Goncalo Ramos then restored their lead after Mikkel Damsgaard had equalised for Denmark.
Rasmus Hojlund scored again for the hosts to make it 2-2.
Portugal, however, regained control of the game in the second half.
Vitinha put them ahead again in the 67th minute. Joao Felix then added a fourth goal late in the game.
The 4-2 victory leaves Jorge Jesus’ side top of Group A4 with nine points from three matches.
Netherlands held by Greece
Elsewhere, the Netherlands came from two goals down to draw 2-2 with Greece.
Fotis Ioannidis and Georgios Masouras gave Greece a two-goal lead in the first half.
Virgil van Dijk reduced the deficit just before the hour mark.
The Netherlands continued to push for an equaliser. Tijjani Reijnders found it a minute before full time.
Wales also earned their first points of the campaign with a 2-1 win over 10-man Norway.
Dan James and Neco Williams scored for Wales.
In League B, Ireland were held to a 2-2 draw by Austria in Dublin.
The game was briefly stopped after tennis balls were thrown onto the pitch in protest over Ireland’s previous fixture against Israel.
Play soon resumed, but Ireland could not secure the win despite Troy Parrott scoring twice.
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