Germany host Serbia in Munich as both sides face Nations League relegation threat
Germany and Serbia meet in a UEFA Nations League clash in Munich between the two bottom-placed teams in their group, both facing possible relegation from League A; Germany are without the injured Nico Schlotterbeck, and Felix Keidel was also left out of the matchday squad.
Germany and Serbia face off in a UEFA Nations League A, Group 2 fixture at the Allianz Arena in Munich. According to Goal.com, kick-off is scheduled for 19:45. The match carries extra weight, as both sides currently occupy the bottom two places in the group and are at risk of relegation from League A.
Context
Jürgen Klopp's Germany have gone four straight internationals without a win heading into this match, having lost 1-0 to Greece and drawn 1-1 with the Netherlands in the Nations League. As Goal.com reports, captain Joshua Kimmich has publicly called for immediate improvement from his teammates, while sporting director Rudi Völler confirmed Klopp is abandoning his broad, experimental 44-man squad approach in favour of a more traditional group selection for this international window.
Serbia, managed by Veljko Paunovic, sit bottom of the group after losses to Greece and the Netherlands in Belgrade. Per Goal.com, Serbia have not kept a clean sheet in 12 internationals, though they showed fight in their 2-1 defeat to Greece, taking an early lead before being pegged back in stoppage time.
Lineups and squad news
According to the BBC, Germany line up in a 4-3-3 formation, while Serbia use a 4-4-2. Germany are missing Borussia Dortmund centre-back Nico Schlotterbeck, who suffered an ankle injury on Wednesday. As reported by Bavarian Football Works, citing UEFA information, SV Elversberg right-back/midfielder Felix Keidel has also been left out of the final 23-man squad — a sign of the intense competition for places under Klopp. The match is officiated by Norwegian referee Espen Eskås, with Tiago Bruno Lopes Martins serving as VAR.
Head-to-head and standings
The two sides last met in a friendly in March 2019 at the Volkswagen Arena in Wolfsburg, which ended 1-1, with Luka Jovic scoring for Serbia and Leon Goretzka equalising for Germany. Across four recorded meetings, Germany hold two wins to Serbia's one, with one draw. In the current Group 2 table, Greece lead with six points, followed by the Netherlands on four, Germany third with one point, and Serbia fourth with none. For Germany, this game could prove decisive ahead of their final group match against the Netherlands on 16 November.
