Germany recorded its biggest win in 15 years with a 9-0 thumping of Liechtenstein in the sides’ FIFA World Cup qualifier on Thursday.
A miserable night for Liechtenstein got off to a terrible start as Jens Hofer was red carded for a high challenge on Leon Goretzka inside the first 10 minutes.
İlkay Gündoğan scored the resulting penalty – the first of four first-half goals for Germany, which included an own-goal from Daniel Kaufmann and strikes from Leroy Sané and Marco Reus.
Sané tallied Germany’s fifth at the start of the second half in Wolfsburg before Thomas Müller made it six with his close range effort at the start of the second half.
Ridle Baku bagged the best goal of the night – a curling strike into the top corner – as he added Germany’s seventh. Müller then nabbed his brace with a deflected shot and another own-goal – this time from the head of Maximilian Göppel – completed the scoring.
The result means Hansi Flick becomes the first Germany coach to win his opening six games in charge with the country having already secured its place at next year’s World Cup in Qatar last month.
“We have to put things into perspective a little: we didn’t have a really strong opponent in our group” was Thomas Müller’s frank assessment of Germany’s World Cup qualifying campaign, which has also included games against North Macedonia, Romania, Armenia and Iceland
“Still, the fans are here and we turned up, so it’s been a great night,” he added.
Thursday’s game was also an opportunity for Germany to pay tribute to Joachim Löw, the long-serving coach of the national team who led the side for 15 years before being replaced by Flick earlier this year.
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Löw, who guided Germany to World Cup glory in 2014, said in an open letter to fans before the game: “When I look back on everything now, with a bit of distance, I don’t just see that golden World Cup trophy. Rather, I see so many faces, ones I connect with fantastic memories, ones who I have had experiences with that will stay with me forever.
“I see friendships which have stood the tests of time, and tournaments and those unique experiences we have shared. These things have shaped us – not just on the pitch, but also our lives.”
