10-Man Germany Cruise Past Estonia, Win 3-0 in Euro 2020 Qualifier
Germany cruised to a 3-0 victory over Estonia in UEFA 2020 European Championship qualifying on Sunday at Tallinn's A. Le Coq Arena despite playing the majority of the game with 10 men.
Joachim Low's side suffered an early blow when Emre Can was shown a red card for a professional foul after just 14 minutes of the tie for a foul on Frank Liivak on the edge of the penalty area.
Germany went on to dominate possession in a goalless first half, but it was Estonia who had the better chances although they could not find a way past goalkeeper Manuel Neuer.
The visitors improved after the break, and two fine strikes from Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan put them firmly in control of the tie.
Substitute Timo Werner wrapped up the win with the third goal on 71 minutes to move Germany back to the top of Group C and another step closer to qualification.
Germany were without the in-form Serge Gnabry for Sunday's tie because of injury. The national team announced before kick-off that the Bayern Munich man had been ruled out as a precaution:
Manager Joachim Low opted to play Can at centre-back alongside Niklas Sule and Marcel Halstenberg, and the Juventus man had the first chance of the game after four minutes.
Gundogan lofted a ball into the penalty area for Can to poke home from close range, but goalkeeper Sergei Lepmets was out quickly to make the block.
Can's next contribution to the match saw Germany go a man down 10 minutes later. The 25-year-old misjudged a pass and then flew into a challenge on the edge of the penalty area in an effort to clear but succeeded only in tripping Liivak:
The dismissal seemed to boost Estonia, who created some good chances in the first half. Konstantin Vassiljev found an unmarked Joonas Tamm at the far post, but he could only side-foot a volley over the bar from close range.
Vassiljev then wasted another clear chance for the hosts. The midfielder met a cross into the box but failed to get the right connection on his shot, which was comfortably claimed by Neuer.
Germany's efforts on goal were few and far between in the first half. Luca Waldschmidt tried his luck with a shot from distance that forced Lepmets to dive and parry clear, while Marco Reus curled a free-kick onto the crossbar five minutes before the break.
However, Germany improved after the break and broke the deadlock early in the second half through Gundogan. The Manchester City midfielder latched on to a loose ball on the edge of the box and drilled a shot across goal and past Lepmets on 51 minutes.
Gundogan grabbed a second six minutes later to put the visitors in control. A clever backheel from Reus in the area set up the midfielder to shoot at goal, his effort taking a deflection off a defender on its way into the back of the net.
Werner replaced Waldschmidt just after the hour and wrapped up the win five minutes later. Gundogan picked out the striker on the edge of the area, and he cut past his defender and made no mistake with a low finish across goal.
What's Next?
Germany resume their qualifying campaign on November 16 at home to Belarus and then play Northern Ireland three days later. Estonia play an international friendly against Ukraine on November 14 and then face the Netherlands in qualifying on November 19.
