Deniz Undav the hero as Germany come from behind to beat Côte d'Ivoire in dramatic fashion
Germany came from behind to beat Côte d'Ivoire 2-1 in Group E of the World Cup. Substitute Deniz Undav scored twice, including a dramatic late winner in stoppage time, to send Germany through to the round of 32.
Germany 2-1 Côte d'Ivoire
Goals: 0-1 Kessie 30', 1-1 Undav 68' (assist: Amiri), 2-1 Undav 90' +4' (assist: Nmecha)
Germany faced Côte d'Ivoire in their second Group E fixture at the FIFA World Cup 2026, knowing that a win would secure their place in the round of 32.
Manuel Neuer made history by playing his 21st World Cup match, surpassing France's Hugo Lloris to become the outright record-holding goalkeeper at the tournament.
Julian Nagelsmann kept faith with the same starting eleven that had dismantled Curaçao 7-1 in the opener, with Nathaniel Brown again preferred at left-back.
Côte d'Ivoire, who had beaten Ecuador 1-0 in their opener, were without their defensive leader Evan Ndicka through injury, but still boasted dangerous attackers including RB Leipzig's Yan Diomande.
Kessie strikes to give Ivory Coast the lead
Germany started brightly, with Kai Havertz flicking a header goalwards from a Joshua Kimmich cross in the 10th minute, only for Yahia Fofana to produce a fine save. Jamal Musiala and Felix Nmecha both went close before Aleksandar Pavlović even forced the ball into the net via the goalkeeper. However, his challenge for the ball was adjudged to be a foul.
Côte d'Ivoire then took the lead in the 30th minute: Diomande drove down the left and fired in a low cross that found Amad Diallo. His shot was blocked on the line, but Franck Kessie swept home the rebound from close range.
Germany pressed hard in the final minutes of the half, as Havertz also had a goal disallowed for a foul in the build-up and Florian Wirtz went close, but the sides went in at the break with Côte d'Ivoire leading 1-0.
Undav off the bench to rescue Germany
Côte d'Ivoire continued to threaten after the break, with Kessie and Christ Inao Oulai both going close in the opening exchanges of the second period.
Meanwhile, Germany struggled to find their rhythm, and Nagelsmann responded on the hour mark with a triple substitution: Deniz Undav, Nadiem Amiri and Jamie Leweling replaced Musiala, Pavlović and Leroy Sané. The changes had an immediate impact: in the 68th minute, Amiri found space on the right and delivered a sumptuous cross to the far post, where Undav volleyed home from close range to level at 1-1.
Both sides pushed for a winner, with chances at both ends, but it looked as though the match would end level — until the 94th minute, when Nmecha played a perfectly weighted pass to Undav, who turned his marker and drove the ball into the net for a dramatic 2-1 winner.
