Germany Player Ratings vs North Macedonia: 9/10 duo Muller, Werner shine; Rest get 8 or lower

Germany thrashed North Macedonia 4-0 at Tose Proeski Arena as Hansi Flick’s side became the first team to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

Germany registered their four straight victory under Hansi Flick thanks to a comfortable 4-0 win against North Macedonia in Skopje. An early second half strike from Kai Havertz with a brace from Timo Werner before Jamal Musiala netted his first senior international goal to lift Germany to 21 points in Group J, with Romania in second place on 13.

The visitors dominated the proceedings from the get-go, with Joshua Kimmich coming agonisingly close to head home from a corner inside the opening two minutes, only for Stole Dimitrievski to push his effort away. Germany created a whole host of chances in the first half but could not get past the North Macedonia stopper.

Thomas Muller sent a header wide before Serge Gnabry challenged Dimitrievski twice. Werner quickly followed suit and got even closer on the brink of half-time with an effort hitting against the near post’s bottom. Havertz eventually broke the deadlock in the 50th minute.

Germany got the goal from their dominance when Serge Gnabry slid through Muller, who successfully carried out a break by continuing his run before generously squared it for a better-placed Havertz to blast into the open net from six yards out.

As Germany tightened the screws, Darko Velkovski almost put a Gnabry cross past his own goalkeeper. Timo Werner netted a quick-fire brace before Musiala’s pinpoint strike sealed the four-time world champions’ direct entry to Qatar 2022. The Hard Tackle will now run the rule over Hansi Flick’s men.

Manuel Neuer: 7/10

Not much to do for the Germany captain between the sticks, as he only faced a single shot on goal for which he comfortably dived left to stop a weak shot from Elif Elmas.

Lukas Klostermann: 7.5/10

The RB Leipzig defender was deployed in the right-back role by Hansi Flick and looked very decent. He was defensively very sound and shut out the right-hand side completely, making four tackles, one interception while having a 96.2 per cent passing accuracy.

Niklas Sule: 6.5/10

Untroubled throughout the game, Had to play more with his feet. Sule pushed Germany’s defensive line forwards in order to create an opening. Completed three of his four attempted long balls.

Thilo Kehrer: 7.5/10

The PSG man was very effective on the day. Saw a lot of the ball and was mostly accurate with his distribution while also trying to get forward at times to start attacks. He was supreme on the ball, completed 112 passes with 96.4 per cent passing accuracy – the highest on the pitch.

David Raum: 8/10

Raum had a decent game after being handed a surprise start. Was quiet initially but eventually got better and better. Left exposed at times in the first half, but played at par with his teammates in the second half.

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Work-rate was impressive, and he was ready to help in the attacking third and then track back to help his defenders put brakes on a couple of Macedonia’s counter-attacks. He has completed 86 per cent of his passes and even made two key passes.

Leon Goretzka: 6/10

Had a relatively poor game and was completely anonymous in the middle of the park. Was hooked off early on the hour mark by Hansi Flick.

Joshua Kimmich: 7.5/10

Bayern’s dynamic midfielder was covering the whole pitch. He could be seen as one of the few players in Germany’s half to stop counters, while at other times, he could be seen leading a counter-attack from the front.

He made a handful of vital tackles and intercepted a couple of important key passes in Germany’s half. Kimmich was in charge of the defensive responsibilities tonight, but he still assisted his teammates well. Ended the game with an 89 per cent pass success rate.

Serge Gnabry: 7/10

The Bayern Munich man looked to make things happen in the final third but was misfiring on the day. He took four shots, out of which only one was on target. He also missed a glorious chance on the back post, as he failed to tap the volley into the back of the net.

Thomas Muller: 9/10

Another memorable performance from the Raumdeuter. Muller was a class act and put up a show in the second half. His work rate and enthusiasm was high as usual, but he exploited the spaces between the lines very well to get himself in dangerous positions. Was the key to breaking North Macedonia’s rigid defensive unit. He got two assists and ended the match with six key passes, the most on the pitch.

Kai Havertz: 8/10

Brilliant on the night. Laying accurate exchange passes while combining with Timo Werner very well. He completed four dribbles, three key passes, took one shot and was fouled twice. His creative impetus and hold-up play was there for everybody to see.

Timo Werner: 9/10

A tale of two halves for Timo Werner. He was equally wasteful and at times frustrating to watch misfiring in front of goal in the first half but recovered very well in the second half. Having Havertz alongside gets the best out of him. Although he frequently found room for a strike, the majority of his attempts lacked force and struck Germany’s greatest chance in the first half against the post.

He played well in the second half, scoring a brace. Both goals were difficult to score, especially the second, which was a wonderful curled effort. Werner will hope to continue improving following this performance.

SUBSTITUTES

Florian Wirtz: 6/10

The teenager looked bright and was more effective than Leon Goretzka. Although he could not get higher up the field as he would have liked.

Karim Adeyemi: 6.5/10

Adeyemi came on for Kai Havertz on the hour mark, released one shot. Intercepted the ball to immediately set Musiala away for the fourth goal.

Jamal Musiala: 7/10

A generational talent and one for the future. It was a composed finish to get his first Germany goal, tucking the ball past the advancing keeper and inside the near post after being set up by fellow substitute Karim Adeyemi.

Jonas Hofmann: 6/10

Came off the bench for Serge Gnabry in the 73rd minute, and by the time the game was dead and buried. Did not get much of the ball.

Florian Neuhaus: N/A

A late introduction, Neuhaus helped see the game out.