Germany vs Liechtenstein

Volkswagen Arena is the venue as Germany take on whipping boys Liechtenstein in a seemingly routine World Cup qualifying encounter.

Germany’s 4-0 thrashing of North Macedonia in the last World Cup qualifying round saw them become the first nation to secure a berth at next year’s showpiece in Qatar. Hansi Flick’s appointment in September has turned ‘Die Mannschaft’ into a force to be reckoned with again, with the Germans winning all five World Cup qualifiers under the ex-Bayern Munich boss by an aggregate score of 18-1. Germany could have another landslide victory on their hands here, having outplayed minnows Liechtenstein in each of their three previous competitive H2Hs by 2+ goals ‘to nil.’ No team in Group J has scored more goals in the ongoing World Cup qualifying cycle than Germany (23) so far, with eight of their last ten goals scored in the competition coming beyond half-time.

In the meantime, a 1-1 away draw with Armenia in September remains the only bright spot in Liechtenstein’s abysmal 2022 World Cup qualifying campaign so far (D1, L7). Rooted to the foot of Group J, the visitors have netted a measly two goals in the ongoing qualifying cycle, with only San Marino (1) scoring fewer goals than them. A run of 39 World Cup qualifying fixtures without a win (D5, L34) that spans back to 2005 douses any embers of optimism when it comes to possible upset here. Furthermore, the ‘Blues-Reds’ have lost all but one of their six international travels this calendar year (D1), conceding 4+ goals in four of those five defeats. Best-case scenario, Liechtenstein can only hope to avoid another 4+ goal defeat, which has been the case in their last two visits to Germany