Korzun picks up a late yellow card for a strong tackle in midfield on Goretzka.
90' +2
Germany are seeing out the clock in traditional fashion as they knock it about in midfield. The pressure is off the visitors as the victory looks a certainty, despite not having played at their best.
90'
The match official indicates an additional four minutes to be added on for stoppages.
85'
Skavysh bursts forward after a loss of possession but Sule gallops back to make a last ditch tackle inside his own penalty area to protect Neuer’s clean sheet.
83'
OFF THE BASE OF THE POST! Sane glances a header across Gutor’s goal, beating the goalkeeper but failing to tuck it in the corner – sending his effort against the woodwork instead!
81'
L. Goretzka enters the game and replaces İ. Gündoğan.
Goretzka gets a chance to play with less than 10 minutes left, replacing Gundogan.
80'
Belarus come forward on the attack with three forwards, but Skavysh doesn’t look to the far post for a team-mate, instead cutting inside and firing a weak shot which is covered by two converging centre-backs.
79'
Sule looks to be beaten for pace by Skavysh, but the Belarus forward commits a silly foul sending the defender to the ground – leaving the referee no choice but to award a free-kick to the visitors.
77'
I. Shitov gets yellow.
Shitov flies into a tackle on Schultz and receives a yellow card for the infringement.
Minute
Description
76'
J. Brandt enters the game and replaces M. Reus.
Reus is replaced by Brandt 14 minutes after putting his nation up by two goals.
75'
Sane takes the free-kick but it’s a poor, flat effort which ricochets off the wall and goes out for a corner. The ensuing set-piece is taken by Kimmich but met by a Belarus defender on the edge of the six-yard box and headed away unconvincingly.
73'
Belarus give away a free-kick after a rash challenge from Dragun on Kimmich. It’s right outside the penalty area, in perfect range for Reus or Sane.
71'
J. Draxler enters the game and replaces S. Gnabry.
Gnabry hasn’t had the greatest of matches and he’ll be taken out in favour of Draxler.
69'
M. Gordeychuk enters the game and replaces Y. Kovalev.
Gordeychuk replaces Kovalev in Belarus’ final change of the match.
67'
Dragun gives away a sloppy free-kick in midfield after taking down Gundogan, and Germany quickly restart play. Gnabry has a chance to strike at goal, but his weak-foot effort is very poor.
65'
Kimmich pushes the ball out to the right, where it’s promptly crossed back inside once again for Reus, who denies the opportunity to shoot as he looks to push it onto his stronger foot. The chance passes, and the Borussia Dortmund forward can only get it to Gnabry, whose rushed shot is no cause for concern.
63'
M. Skavysh enters the game and replaces D. Laptev.
Laptev is withdrawn just after the hour as Skavysh is brought on by the Belarus manager.
62'
M. Reus has scored a goal for Germany! Assist by M. Ginter.
It’s impossible to tell whether or not Ginter was intending to pick out Reus, but the end result is an assist for Germany’s lead-doubling second goal.
REUS DOUBLE THE ADVANTAGE AND MAKES IT 2-0! Ginter gets forward and plays a ball square across the face of the 18-yard box for the Borussia Dortmund forward whose first touch takes him beyond the line of defence. From there, it’s a simple finish in front of Gutor!
61'
Kovalev charges forward into the Germany penalty area and hits the byeline before cutting back a cross which is intercepted, then kept in play by Gundogan.
59'
Reus is stopped after a one-two pass with Sane, but an incredibly timed slide tackle halts the move. Naumov boots it away into Germany’s half, but Neuer is pushed all the way into midfield to get the ball ahead once more.
57'
N. Korzun enters the game and replaces V. Gromyko.
The first substitution of the match sees Gromyko depart for Korzun as Belarus chase the lead.
56'
Reus bursts through the middle of the penalty area and has the room to strike but he instead lays it off to Sane who is unable to get clean contact with the ball due to his rapid pace. It breaks down once again for Germany as they are forced to play it back into midfield to start again.
54'
CHANCE GOES BEGGING FOR GERMANY! Klostermann is finally able to get onto the ball inside the penalty area unimpeded after a pass from Reus, and he cuts inside before firing a rocket with his left foot which goes just over the crossbar!
52'
Tah is now getting forward looking to supply the run of the strikers ahead of him, but his feathered pass into Sane is read by Naumov. The counter-attack is on for Kovalev, but Ginter drags him down in midfield to allow his team-mates to come back and help out.
50'
Gundogan is on the ball short of options, so he plays it just outside the penalty area to Kimmich. The midfielder wraps his foot around a cross to the far post for the run of Klostermann, but he’s beat to the ball by his marker.
48'
Sane gets into the penalty area and has a chance to shoot on his right after a lovely pass from Gundogan, but he attempts to cut back on his right and has his attempt blocked out for a corner.
46'
Germany get the match restarted from the kick-off!
45' +1
HALF-TIME: BELARUS 0-1 GERMANY.
45'
The referee indicates an additional minute of time to be added on at the end of the first half for stoppages.
42'
Sane takes possession on the left wing and cuts inside, running at the defence as he slaloms past four Belarus defenders. He is unable to get past Martynovich however, who manages to get a foot in to clear it for the time being.
40'
Reus makes a run from a deep position into the penalty area, and Kimmich reads the movement beautifully – but the goalkeeper is also alert to the danger as he comes off his line to make the catch.
38'
Germany seem to be labouring around the penalty area slightly despite the immense quality they have on the field. They are at their best when their dynamic players are charging towards goal, but Belarus has had precious little possession to allow the visitors to set up in that way.
36'
Kimmich hooks a corner to the near post but Martynovich is there to meet it. The danger isn’t fully cleared as Gnabry gets on the end of it but, despite the time, he is unable to put in an effective cross as the goalkeeper comes to claim it.
34'
Reus gives away a free-kick inside Belarus’ half after a coordinated bit of pressing is ultimately a bit too physical for the referee. Kimmich is unhappy with the decision and also draws a word from the match official, who has otherwise had little to do today.
32'
Neuer is drawn out of his goal and towards the left corner flag after a neat interchange gets Gromyko free on goal. The ball is slightly ahead of the forward which allows the goalkeeper to charge for it, and he takes control of possession before dribbling neatly – ultimately conceding a corner.
30'
Marcus Sorg takes charge in place of Joachim Low tonight and he must be pleased with what his side have produced so far. Despite only being ahead by a goal, Germany have more than impressed with their flying wingers in Gnabry and Sane, who are constantly causing chaos.
26'
Belarus finally have a move forward but Sule comes across to block the Laptev strike. The ensuing corner is very poor, as it goes over everyone’s heads to the back post.
24'
Kimmich lets a throughball roll between his legs before turning on it outside the six-yard box and striking towards goal. It’s a lovely move from the midfielder which wins his side a corner-kick.
22'
A lovely one-timed ball is played over the top to Sane from midfield, but Martynovich is once again present, using his physical stature to muscle the winger off the ball and let it roll out for a goal-kick.
20'
Gnabry finds Klostermann on the right-hand side but his low, driven cross is cleared by Martynovich.
18'
Belarus get lucky as a sloppy interchange inside the penalty area leads to an offside call against Reus. It’s the narrowest of margins, but the linesman was on the spot to make the call.
16'
Germany are looking dominant in the opening 20 minutes as they come forward with wave after wave of attack. Belarus are trying to hit on the counter-attack, but they are having a very difficult time matching the pace of their opposing defenders.
14'
Germany once again get forward, looking to double the advantage but Kimmich’s hammered shot is blocked by a sliding Belarus defender, and Gnabry is unable to settle the ball back and start another attack.
12'
L. Sané has scored a goal for Germany! Assist by J. Kimmich.
Kimmich has such wonderful vision, and it was on full-display for the assist on Sane’s goal.
SANE PUTS THE VISITORS AHEAD! 1-0 GERMANY! It’s a simple goal as Kimmich splits the defence with a leading pass from outside the penalty area, which allows the Manchester City winger to put it onto his left foot before smashing a shot above the flailing Gutor!
11'
Naumov gives away a free-kick in a dangerous area on the wing after his initial slide tackle attempt fails – and he chooses to obstruct the path of Klostermann with his body. The set-piece is taken short, but it finally filters out to the left, where Reus’ cross flies narrowly over the crossbar.
9'
SAVE ON KLOSTERMANN! Gnabry breaks into the penalty area and fires a shot towards Gutor who tries to collect the ball on his knees, only to bobble it in the direction of the Germany right wing-back. His shot is parried away unconvincingly as well, and the hosts manage to smuggle it away!
6'
Kimmich takes a corner but its defended neatly near the six-yard box. The counter-attack looks to be on for Belarus, but Sule gets ahead of the charging Gromyko and plays a simple ball back to Neuer.
3'
Gromyko wins a corner after seeing his shot from just outside the box blocked by two converging Germany defenders. The hosts are giving the crowd something to cheer about in the early stages, as they seek to capitalise on a somewhat shakey defence.
1'
Belarus get the match underway from the kick-off!
Hello and welcome to our LIVE commentary of the Euro 2020 Qualifier between Belarus and Germany!
Belarus got their quest for a spot in Euro 2020 off to a poor start, losing 4-0 to The Netherlands before conceding late to lose 2-1 to Northern Ireland. Igor Kriushenko’s side must start accumulating points quickly if they wish to reach the tournament proper, but Germany visit the Borisov Arena looking to make it two wins out of two. Belarus are undefeated in four matches in all competitions at home, but the prospect of the 2014 World Champions is no easy feat; regardless of venue or form.
Germany started their round-robin phase with a last-minute victory over the Netherlands in Amsterdam. Today they look to win in their 100th European Championship Qualifier, and make it back-to-back victories which will cut the gap to leaders Northern Ireland to three points having played a match fewer. There will be no Joachim Low today, however, as the World Cup winning manager was recently hospitalised.
BELARUS SUBS: Pavel Pavlyuchenko, Nikita Korzun, Zakhar Volkov, Mikhail Gordeychuk, Yevgeniy Shikavka, Andrey Klimovich, Syarhey Kislyak, Kirill Pechenin, Maksim Skavysh, Pavel Nekhajchik, Oleg Veretilo, Igor Stasevich.
BELARUS XI (4-2-3-1): Aleksandr Gutor; Denis Polyakov, Aleksandr Martynovich, Nikita Naumov, Igor Shitov; Stanislav Dragun, Valeri Gromyko; Maksim Volodko, Ivan Maevski, Yuri Kovalev; Denis Laptev.
GERMANY XI (5-4-1): Manuel Neuer; Lukas Klostermann, Niklas Sule, Matthias Ginter, Jonathan Tah, Nico Schultz; Serge Gnabry, Ilkay Gundogan, Joshua Kimmich, Leroy Sane; Marco Reus.
GERMANY SUBS: Julian Brandt, Kevin Trapp, Julian Draxler, Jonas Hector, Thilo Kehrer, Timo Werner, Leon Goretzka, Niklas Stark, Kai Havertz, Marcel Halstenberg, Sven Ullrich.
The first half comes to a close as Germany lead Belarus by 1-0, though the score may suggest a closer encounter than what’s transpired at the Borisov Arena. Germany dominated the match, holding their opponents to under 30% possession while managing 13 total shots. Gnabry and Sane have been explosive down the wings when running towards the defence, but Belarus’ more defensive style limits the counter-attacking capabilities of the two, causing a bit of stagnation in front of goal. Belarus manager Kriushenko should be happy that his team aren’t behind by more – but must encourage his side to attack in the second half if they wish to take a point.
Though their superiority is easily visible, there is no doubt that Germany will need at least one more goal to feel more at ease. Their tentativeness around the penalty area, in conjunction with the fantastic play of centre-back and captain Martinovych in the heart of the Belarus defence, has prevented the match from spiraling. Perhaps another playmaker in the centre of the park alongside Kimmich can facilitate easier attacking moves.
This concludes our commentary of the Euro 2020 Qualifier between Belarus and Germany! We hope you enjoyed the match!
Belarus will face Northern Ireland in their next Euro 2020 Qualifier on Tuesday, while Germany play Estonia on the same day.
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