Joachim Low’s side will be happy to see the back of 2018 but Ronald Koeman’s visitors know a win can send them to the Nations League finals
From World Cup holders to Nations League relegation fodder, 2018 has been something of an annus horribilis for Germany.
Joachim Low’s side headed to Russia looking to defend their title this year, only to be ignominiously knocked out in the group stages.
A disastrous Nations League campaign against France – the team who supplanted them as holders of the World Cup crown – and Netherlands has only worsened their woes and, with the Dutch’s unexpected 2-0 win over the world champions in midweek, they now find themselves condemned to League B for the next edition of the Nations League.
Ronald Koeman’s side still have the chance to qualify for the finals with a win or a draw too, against the odds – but will Gelsenkirchen be Oranje come full-time today or can the hosts sign off with a consolation win?
| Game | Germany v Netherlands |
| Date | Monday, November 19 |
| Time | 7:45pm GMT / 2:45pm ET |
In the United States (US), the game can be watched live and on-demand with fuboTV (7-day free trial).
New users can sign up for a free seven-day trial of the live sports streaming service, which can be accessed via iOS, Android, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Roku and Apple TV as well as on a web browser.
table.tableizer-table { font-size: 14px; border: 1px solid #CCC; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; } .tableizer-table td { padding: 4px; margin: 3px; border: 1px solid #CCC; } .tableizer-table th { background-color: #00a9ce; color: #FFF; font-weight: bold; }
| US TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| Univision Deportes | fubo TV (7-day free trial) |
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game can be watched live on Sky Sports Mix and Sky Sports Football, and livestreamed on Sky Go.
| UK TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| Sky Sports Mix/Sky Sports Football | Sky Go |
| Position | Germany players |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Neuer, Leno, Trapp |
| Defenders | Kehrer, Hector, Ginter, Hummels, Schulz, Sule, Rudiger, Tah |
| Midfielders | Goretzka, Kroos, Rudy, Brandt, Reus, Kimmich, Gnabry, Sane, Havertz |
| Forwards | Werner, Muller, Uth |
Low’s woes have continued to deepen with the withdrawel of Sami Khedira through injury from his squad as he looks to back up victory over Russia with a morale-boosting win against the Dutch.
Marco Reus, was left out for precautionary measures last time round and did not make the XI against the Netherlands.
Germany XI: Neuer; Hummels, Sule, Rudiger; Kehrer, Kimmich, Kroos, Schulz; Gnabry, Sane, Werner
| Position | Netherlands players |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Bizot, Cillessen, Zoet |
| Defenders | Van Aanholt, Ake, Blind, Van Dijk, Dumfries, De Ligt, Tete, De Vrij |
| Midfielders | Van de Beek, De Jong, De Roon, Rosario, Strootman, Vilhena, Wijnaldum |
| Forwards | Babel, Bergwijn, Depay, Dilrosun, De Jong, Promes |
Oranje boss Koeman was left surprised and delighted by his side’s toppling of the world champions and though he had no fresh injury concerns, still made a couple of changes to the side who won on Friday.
Memphis Depay will lead the attack once more, with Quincy Promes coming into a front three beside him.
Netherlands XI: Cillessen; Tete, De Ligt, Van Dijk, Blind; De Roon, De Jong, Wijnaldum; Promes, Babel, Depay.
Germany are the favourites to take the victory at 10/11, according to bet 365, while a draw is available at 11/4. Netherlands, meanwhile, are priced at 10/3.
Click here to see all of bet 365’s offers for the game, including goalscoring markets, correct score predictions and more.
This time last year, Germany were world champions, ranked first by FIFA around the globe and widely tipped to mount a successful defence of their crown in Russia the following summer.
Fast forward 12 months and their reputation as the kings of football is in tatters. Not only did they fail to reclaim the World Cup, they could not get out of the group stages, eliminated after defeats to Mexico and South Korea.
Now, in the inaugural Nations League, they have misfired once more, winless across their three games so far and relegated to the second tier from Group A1 at the hands of France and Netherlands.
Thankfully, the end of 2018 is in sight for Joachim Low’s side and once into January, they can turn their attention to the qualification campaign for the 2020 European Championship.
Ronald Koeman’s Oranje are their final opponents of the November international break, and the Dutch will be determined to write their own little bit of history.
Having failed to reach the World Cup, Netherlands looked set for a rather dull year, but last week’s win over France has put them on the verge of reaching next year’s Nations League finals.
For the former Everton manager, it represents a significant turnaround in fortunes since he replaced Dick Advocaat in February.
Win and they leapfrog Les Bleus to reach the final four. Draw and they can still progress thanks to a superior goal difference.
In a sense, both sides have everything to play for, and nothing left to lose in their final games of a contrasting calendar year.