Germany defeated Greece 2-1 at Borussia-Park on Friday night in gritty fashion to finish their preparations ahead of their Euro 2024 opener against Scotland on Friday 14th June.
Goals from Kai Havertz and Pascal Groß were enough to overcome a 1-0 deficit after Giorgios Masouras had given the away side the lead.
Whilst manager Julian Nagelsmann will be pleased by the character shown to fight back after falling behind, the lacklustre performance of some of his players may give him some tough questions to ponder, after a valiant Greece side threatened to spoil their pre-tournament party.
Here are VAVEL's player ratings for the game:
Germany
Manuel Neuer - 5
The Bayern Munich goalkeeper made a fantastic double save in the first half to deny Tzolis. However, it was his error that contributed to the Greek goal - fumbling a tame effort to gift Masouras a tap-in.
Joshua Kimmich - 6
A mixed night for the full-back, who was solid on the ball but got caught out of possession several times, leading to threatening Greece counter-attacks.
Antonio Rüdiger - 5
The Real Madrid Champions League-winning centre-back failed to live up to his usual level of performance, winning only one of his eight ground duels. He was bullied on several occasions by the Greek forwards and will need to be better at Euro 2024 against tougher opposition.
Jonathan Tah - 5
It was Tah's misplaced pass that led to the Greek goal and, in the first half, there were several other wayward passes that put his team under pressure. He did make some amends when stopping a two-on-one counter-attack late in the first half, to stop the away side from increasing their advantage.
Maximilian Mittelstädt - 6
The left-back was steady overall, but question marks were raised on whether he could have done a better job tracking Masouras for the Greek goal.
Toni Kroos - 8
The Champions League-winning midfielder was the best player on the pitch. He was at the soul of any positive moments for Germany, showcasing his calmness and progressive ability on the ball as well as creating dangerous opportunities from his set-piece deliveries.
Robert Andrich - 5
The midfielder was very wasteful in possession during the first half and consistently lost the ball in precarious positions, putting his side under unnecessary pressure before he was substituted.
İlkay Gündoğan - 6
The German captain was largely ineffective before he was replaced. Although he retained possession better than most of his teammates, he was unable to provide much of a creative spark or get into many promising positions to benefit his side going forward.
Florian Wirtz - 6
The Bayer Leverkusen man had brief creative sparks in the first half but suffered from Germany's tendency to keep possession and sustain attacks, often being very isolated.
Jamal Musiala - 6
The promising Bayern Munich youngster had flashes of brilliance, where he showcased his incredible dribbling ability and direct goal threat. However, he was unable to show this consistently and was on the fringes of the game.
Kai Havertz - 7
The Arsenal striker was isolated for much of the first half but took his offside goal very well, calmly slotting the ball into the bottom right-hand corner. Unfortunately, he had just strayed forward too early and therefore the goal was ruled out, but the forward finally got his goal in the 55th minute, albeit with a slight bit of fortune.
Substitutes
David Raum - 5
The experienced full-back struggled to cope with Anastasios Douvikas and was consistently beaten by the Greek winger, which allowed the visitors to get into dangerous positions.
Leroy Sane - 7
The winger assisted the first German goal after turning in the box and finding Havertz at the penalty spot. He offered a greater threat for Germany in transition, and certainly did not harm his claims for a Euro 2024 starting berth.
Niclas Füllkrug - 6
The striker only had limited moments during his outing but was a handful was for the Greek defence.
The RB Leipzig full-back helped provide a greater attacking threat, consistently overlapping to provide more support. He was unlucky to hit the bar from a thunderous 20-yard strike when Germany were chasing victory.
Pascal Groß - 7
Groß provided the pivotal match-winning moment in the 89th minute. After Havertz cross was cleared, the ball was headed as far as the oncoming Groß who expertly finished the chance into the top right corner to send the supporters at Borussia-Park home happy.
The centre-back stopped a crucial Greek two-on-one counter-attack at 1-1, and showed his ability on the ball completing 100% of his passes, as he helped Germany exert more control on the game.
Greece
Odysseas Vladchodimos - 6
Vladchodimos was unlucky with Havertz's goal, as a deflection took it away from him. Other than that he made several, though perhaps expected, saves and was dependable in the Greek goal.
Lazaros Rota - 5
The full-back struggled defensively, winning only three of his nine duels. He also lost possession 10 times as he struggled to support his side going forward.
Pantelis Hatzidiakos - 6
The centre-back was good defensively but wasteful in possession, often gifting the ball straight back to Germany and allowing them to gain a foothold in the game.
The West Ham defender was solid at the back winning all of his duels and making several crucial defensive contributions.
Giannoulis was solid defensively and dealt with the task of dealing with danger man Wirtz expertly. He struggled a bit more once Sane came on given the pace that he threatened with.
Petros Mantalos - 7
Mantalos worked hard, engaging in several duels, contributing to the Greek high press and moving the ball well in transition.
Manolis Siopis - 5
The midfielder was wasteful in possession several times, and failed to win his battles against the German opposition, winning only one of his eight duels.
Anastasios Bakasetas - 6
Bakasetas helped to set the Greece tempo early on in the match and moved the ball effectively and quickly to create threatening situations.
Christos Tzolis - 7
The young winger was a consistent threat going forward, particularly in the first half when the Greek press was at its best. Tzolis reaped the benefits of Kimmich being out of position, however his end product let him and his side down at times as he squandered a fantastic two-on-one chance with a careless pass that allowed Tah to intercept.
Giorgos Masouras - 7
Masouras helped to lead the successful Greek press and was rewarded for his tireless efforts defensively when he capitalised on a fumble from Neuer to put the visitors ahead.
Fotis Ioannidis - 6
The Panathinaikos striker had little involvement in the game before suffering an injury and being substituted in just the 10th minute.
