Greece vs Germany: Klopp's side seek revenge in Nations League clash

Background

As part of the 2026/27 UEFA Nations League group phase, Greece and Germany met in the reverse fixture at Toumba Stadium in Thessaloniki, according to information compiled by Yahoo Sports. Kick-off was at 20:45 CET. It was the second meeting between the two sides this campaign — a week earlier in Augsburg, Greece had surprisingly beaten Germany 1-0, while a few days later Germany secured a convincing 2-0 win over Serbia in Munich, with Florian Wirtz scoring and providing an assist. Greece's squad has been described as one of the country's strongest in recent decades and went into the match top of the group.

Line-ups and match statistics

Germany head coach Jürgen Klopp confirmed before the match that midfielder Aleksandar Pavlović and goalkeeper Jonas Urbig would start, denying earlier reports of a possible debut for Finn Dahmen. According to match data compiled by the BBC, Germany dominated the game statistically — possession stood at 72.4% for Germany against 27.6% for Greece, with Germany registering 10 shots (three on target) compared to Greece's one shot (also on target). Germany completed 322 passes at 91.6% accuracy, while Greece managed 121 passes at 67.8% accuracy. Greece's goalkeeper made three saves, Germany's one. None of the sources specify the final goal score of the match.

Press conference mood

The pre-match press conference had an unusually relaxed atmosphere — as reported by Get German Football News, Klopp joked with Pavlović about Greece's 2004 European Championship title, won under coach Otto Rehhagel, pointing out that Pavlović had only just been born that year. Klopp repeatedly praised the Greek translator and unsuccessfully tried to get her to sing a tribute to Rehhagel. Several players were mentioned as potential standout performers ahead of the match, including Wirtz, Pavlović, Tom Bischof and the young goalkeeper Urbig.