Under the coaching of Hansi Flick, Germany smashed Armenia 4-1 and the Bundesteam claimed their seventh win a row. In the 15th minute of the football match, Kai Havertz broke the deadlock with an accurate shot into the top left corner. Leroy Sane looked to get in on the act after being teed up by Hofmann, but the Bayern Munich man’s effort was superbly denied by Stanislav Buchnev.
Chances were few and far between for the hosts, but Eduard Spertsyan should have done much better with a close-range effort that he sent over the bar. In first-half stoppage time, there was drama when the VAR encouraged referee François Letexier to view the pitchside monitor following Taron Voskanyan’s challenge on Florian Neuhaus inside the box. A penalty was given and Ilkay Gundogan converted the subsequent spot-kick with ease to double the Germans’ lead.
The second half began with a gift for Gundogan when his tame shot from the edge of the box somehow slipped through Buchnev’s grasp five minutes after the restart to make it 3-0. But there was a sting in the tail, as Neuhaus was involved in a penalty decision at the other end of the pitch after his challenge on Davit Terteryan saw Letexier point to the spot once more.
Just a minute before an hour mark the hosting side’s captain Henrikh Mkhitaryan stepped up to score from the penalty spot past Marc-Andre ter Stegen. The hosts’ joy was short-lived though, and Hofmann ruthlessly punished some indecisive Armenian defending with a clinical finish past Buchnev at his near post in the 65th minute.
Here are match highlights as the already-qualified Germany smashed Armenia in style in their qualification campaign. As for the other group J contenders, it is North Macedonia who marches on into the knockout stage.
Group J
Armenia – Germany 1:4
Goals: Mkhitaryan 59’ (p.) – Havertz 15’, Gundogan 45+4’ (p.), 50’, Hofmann 64’
Liechtenstein – Romania 0:2
Goals: Man 8’, Bancu 87’
North Macedonia – Iceland 3:1
Goals: Alioski 7’, Elmas 65’, 87’ – Thorsteinsson 54’
