Substitute Deniz Undav emerged as Germany’s hero with a dramatic 94th-minute winner that completed his side’s stunning comeback win against Ivory Coast and booked their place in the World Cup knockout stages.
The four-time winners endured a frustrating outing after going behind to a 30th-minute goal from Ivory Coast captain Franck Kessie but Julian Nagelsmann turned to his bench in search of a response – and Undav delivered emphatically with a second-half double.
The Stuttgart forward applied a smart finish to fellow substitute Nadiem Amiri’s cross to break Ivory Coast’s resistance in the 68th minute before scoring the winner in the 94th minute to inflict a painful defeat on the African nation.
Undav had also scored a goal and provided two assists after coming off the bench in their 7-1 opening win against Curacao.
The dejected Ivorians can still progress from Group E behind Germany with a win against World Cup debutants Curacao in their final game.
Emerse Fae’s side impressed with their energy and directness early on in Toronto, but it was Germany who carved out the clearer of chances.
The Germans had the ball in the back of net in the 22nd minute through Aleksandar Pavlovic but his header from a corner was ruled out for a foul on goalkeeper Yahia Fofana.
Ivory Coast then took the lead as their exciting 19-year-old winger Yan Diomande found Amad Diallo, whose close-range effort was blocked by Nathaniel Brown only for Kessie to convert the rebound.
Germany’s frustration grew as Havertz had a goal disallowed for a foul on Emmanuel Agbadou by Jamal Musiala in the build-up while an unmarked Christ Inao Oulai and Kessie spurned chances to double the Ivorians’ lead.
Those misses ultimately proved costly as they were undone by the injury-time winner from Undav.
Fofana had kept out efforts from Brown and Amiri late on but there was nothing he could do as Undav expertly trapped a pass from Felix Nmecha and slotted past the goalkeeper on the turn to break the Ivorian hearts in the dying seconds.
Nagelsmann’s inspired changes rescue Germany
Germany put on a show in their opener as they delivered a thrashing of Curacao for the biggest win of the opening round.
But an exciting Ivory Coast side, brimming with the confidence from a late victory against Ecuador in their opener, posed an altogether different challenge.
Diomande, linked with a move to Liverpool, showcased his pace and raw ability on the left flank for the Ivorians, while Manchester United winger Amad, Kessie and 20-year-old Oulai all caused problems for the German defence that has now kept just one clean sheet in its past six matches.
Ultimately though, Germany were rescued by the quality of their substitutes.
With his side trailing 1-0, Nagelsmann made a triple change in the 60th minute, bringing on Jamie Leweling, Amiri and Undav – with the latter duo combining for the equaliser only eight minutes later.
Undav then struck a second to take his tally to nine goals in just 11 appearances for Germany and make his case for a starting spot again, helping his side put embarrassing group-stage exits in 2018 and 2022 behind them.
Ivory Coast, meanwhile, can take a lot of heart from their performance despite the last-gasp defeat.
This group of players remain well-placed to achieve a feat that eluded the likes of Didier Drogba, Yaya Toure, Kolo Toure and Salomon Kalou before them – taking their country to the knockout stages of a World Cup.
