How much resistance will Northern Ireland put up against Germany?
With Joshua Kimmich at right back, the German national soccer team took an important step toward qualifying for the 2026 World Cup on Friday evening. With a comfortable 4-0 home win against Luxembourg, which could have been even higher given an early 2-0 lead and an hour-long numerical advantage, the DFB team moved to the top of Group A, temporarily correcting the slip-up in Bratislava. National coach Julian Nagelsmann’s team benefited from Northern Ireland’s 2-0 home win in their parallel match against Slovakia.
After three of six match days, three teams now have six points to their name. Another slip-up would therefore definitely not be advisable from Germany’s point of view. However, a very difficult task awaits the 2024 European Championship quarterfinalists on Monday evening. At Windsor Park in Belfast, the “Green & White Army,” as the Northern Irish team is known at home, is a very tough opponent. In this regard, a remarkable statistic must be taken into account for the Northern Ireland vs. Germany prediction!
Since October 2023, the world number 72 has not lost a single international match in front of their own fans. During this period, Switzerland (1-1) and Denmark (0-2) also struggled against Northern Ireland’s home strength. After their 2-0 win against Slovakia, the DFB team should be on alert. Especially considering that the German national soccer team still seems rather fragile. Continuity? Nonexistent! Stability? At times! Efficiency? Lacking! On top of that, there is enormous pressure on Kimmich and Co. All Germans expect a confident away win and direct qualification for the World Cup. However, the team embodies this self-image far too rarely.
If anyone can handle the pressure mentioned above, it is captain Joshua Kimmich, who leads by example with his mentality and performance – regardless of whether he is needed as a right-back or in central midfield. The experienced Bayern star is a penalty taker and will also be involved in many offensive actions in his new, old role as a playmaker dropping back to the right. That’s exactly why I see value in Kimmich scoring in the Northern Ireland vs. Germany prediction. In the Bet365 app, you’ll find odds of 4.00 as the maximum for this.
The above comments also indicate that Northern Ireland will have their chances. Set pieces are one of their biggest weapons. Coach Martin O’Neill’s team also has decent quality in transition play. They will repeatedly try to provoke the opponent into losing the ball with their compact block defense and then quickly play vertically forward. I therefore believe that the supposed underdogs are also capable of scoring at least one goal and would therefore recommend betting on both teams to score!
Northern Ireland – Germany Head-to-head record
The first leg took place just a month ago in Cologne. Gnabry gave the DFB team a 1-0 lead, but Isaac Price equalized before halftime to make it 1-1. In the second half, Amiri and Wirtz finally scored the decisive goals for a deserved but unspectacular 3-1 home win. In the 20th match between these two teams, it was Germany’s 14th victory. Four matches ended in a draw, and Northern Ireland has only won twice. Interestingly, in six of the seven World Cup qualifying matches between these two teams, both teams have scored at least one goal.
Northern Ireland – Germany Tip
The German national soccer team is back on track in Group A of the World Cup qualifiers. After losing their opening game in Slovakia, the DFB team first won at home against Northern Ireland and then against Luxembourg on Friday evening. Thanks to the best goal difference among the three teams, all of which have six points, Nagelsmann’s team now leads the table. However, one should not make the mistake of underestimating the numerous areas for improvement in the self-proclaimed World Cup title contenders. For example, the Germans have only kept a clean sheet in one of their last eight international matches.
Resistance is definitely to be expected on Monday evening in Belfast. On the one hand, because Northern Ireland scored in the first leg in Cologne and, with their physical style of play, caused the favorites from Germany real problems at times. On the other hand, because “Norn Iron” has not lost a home game since October 2023 and defeated Slovakia 2-0 on Friday evening.
My tendency is therefore to bet on “both teams to score” between Northern Ireland and Germany. The Oddset app offers odds of 1.75. I’m betting six out of a possible ten units. Nevertheless, my prediction is a narrow 2-1 away win – with Joshua Kimmich scoring!
