Germany turned a 2-1 deficit against Ivory Coast into a dramatic 2-1 victory thanks to Deniz Ondaff's last-minute brace in the second round of the group stage of the 2026 World Cup, in a match that saw the elephants collapse after a brave performance that almost gave them a historic surprise.
Germany's victory came after decisive substitutions made by coach Julian Nagelsmann in the 60th minute, which completely changed the course of the match, and turned Ivory Coast's lead with a goal from Frank Kessie (22nd minute) into a painful last-minute loss.
Ivorian coach Emersi Fay made his attacking intentions clear with an ambitious game plan against Germany, who had crushed the humble Curaçao team with 7 clean sheets in the first round, and it looked like his plan would actually work.
Ivory Coast advances well
The first minutes of the game saw clear Ivorian dominance, with Yann Diomandi showing lightning speed on the wing, although his passes to striker Angie Ioan Boni were not always accurate.
Goalkeeper Yahya Fofana was on alert to prevent Kai Havertz from scoring (9th minute), but almost made a serious mistake a few minutes later in a confrontation with German defender Pavlovic, who beat him in the air, but the goal was cancelled out due to a foul.
The game was fun and open, with both teams attacking and creating many chances, but the first goal was deservedly for Ivory Coast.
The brilliant Diomandi took off on the wing and passed the ball to Amad Diallo, who happily bounced back to Franck Kessie, who finished off the attack with a superb side-shot (min. 22).
Germany presses in vain
The German's pressure intensified towards the end of the first half, with Jamal Musiala being handicapped just outside the box after a superb acrobatic performance, Florian Wirtz wreaking havoc on every attack, while Havertz's goal was ruled out for offside (39th minute).
Ivory Coast dominated the ball at the start of the second half, and the surprise seemed to be coming true, but Nagelsmann had a different opinion.
In the 60th minute, Nagelsmann produced an amazing tactical performance by making 3 substitutions at once, which completely changed the course of the match.
Along with Jimmy Llewelling, who posed a constant threat on the wing, Nadim Amiri and Deniz Ondav were decisive in the heart of the result.
Ljueling quickly took off on the wing and sent a low cross to the far post, which reached Ondaf, who scored the equalizer with ease (68th minute), to take his tally to 8 goals in just 11 games for his country.
Crazy final minutes
The final minutes of the match saw mutual chances for both teams, with Nathaniel Brown having a chance to make it 2-1 for Germany, but Fofana made a brilliant save (89'), as he did against Amiri (90+1').
Just seconds earlier, Simon Adengera had a clear chance for Ivory Coast, but he abruptly opted to control the ball rather than shoot right after Pepe's superb start on the wing, a decision that proved crucial.
In the final minutes of stoppage time, Deniz Ondav scored his second goal of the match to secure the three points for his country (90+4 min), in a crushing collapse for Ivory Coast, who deserved at least a point of equalisation.
With this win, the German national team raised its score to 6 points from two matches, to officially guarantee qualification to the round of 32, after starting its campaign with a big victory over Curaçao.
On the other hand, the balance of the Ivory Coast national team was frozen at 3 points, postponing the decision of its fate to the third and final round of the group stage, where it will need a positive result to maintain its hopes of qualifying.
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