Germany were first out of the blocks. Stindl opened the scoring with a crisp shot from ten yards out. The assist was provided by the Leverkusen livewire Brandt who produced an incredibly impressive international performance. The 21-year-old covered a lot of ground, including down both wings, and he was involved in nearly all of Germany's attacks.
Brandt was unlucky on 21 minutes when the Aussie goalkeeper Mathew Ryan saved his effort on goal. Leno was also unlucky when Thomas Rogic levelled the scores on 41 minutes. Shkodran Mustafi blocked the first shot as Leno dived to the left but the keeper was unable to recover in time to save the second shot on goal. Julian Draxler restored Germany's lead three minutes later to make it 2-1 at half-time.
"It was a very, very good first half with good moves," said Germany coach Joachim Löw before adding: "Unfortunately it was only 2-1. A lot of players were making their first appearance at a tournament. I'm completely satisfied."
Germany made the perfect start after the break. Joshua Kimmich provided the assist for Leon Goretzka to make it 3-1 with a volley on 47 minutes.
Australia refused to give up. And they benefited from a deflection: Leno was unable to hold onto deflected long-range effort and Tomi Juric was able to bundle the ball into the net on 57 minutes. Referee Mark Geiger consulted the video evidence before awarding the goal. Brandt's game ended shortly after that. The striker was replaced on 63 minutes by the Liverpool and former Leverkusen player Emre Can.
Neither side was able to find the back of the net for the rest of the game. Germany deserved to win overall thanks to a superior first half. The game failed to flow in the second half.
Chile and Charles Aranguiz on Thursday
Germany's next game is against Chile on Thursday night at 20.00 CET in Kasan. The Leverkusen trio are set to face their team-mate Charles Aranguiz who played in Chile's opening match that saw La Roja beat Cameroon 2-0.
Bayer 04 Women missed out on victory in the Google Pixel Bundesliga as they were held to a draw at home to Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday. Estrella Merino Gonzalez had put the Werkself ahead directly from a corner at the Ulrich-Haberland-Stadion, before Laura Freigang levelled for the visitors as it finished all square between fourth and third on Matchday 7.
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Bayer 04 will have to manage without attacking midfielder Martin Terrier for the time being. The Frenchman sustained a muscle injury to his left hamstring yesterday, Thursday 15 October, during the Europa League game against Polish champions Lech Poznan (4–0). Terrier is not expected to be available until late December.
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Following the international break, the Bayer 04 women’s team face their next head-to-head clash in the race for a top spot in the Bundesliga. In Saturday’s home match (14:00 CEST), the fourth-placed side host third-placed Eintracht Frankfurt at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium. Head coach Roberto Pätzold is well aware of the great opportunity this presents for his team.
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