Klopp Suffers First Home Loss as Germany Boss

Jürgen Klopp lost for the first time as Germany coach, beaten 1-0 by Greece in Augsburg in his first match in charge on home soil. Dimitrios Kourbelis struck in the 74th minute, his shot from the edge of the box deflecting in off Joshua Kimmich, to give Greece a first win in 11 meetings with Germany.

Germany dominated for long spells, holding close to 80% possession in the first half alone, but could not turn control into chances that mattered. Felix Nmecha fired wide in the 54th minute after Greece's goalkeeper, Konstantinos Tzolakis, had palmed over a Joshua Kimmich free-kick. Greece almost scored themselves in the 66th minute when Kimmich lost the ball in his own half, but substitute Fotis Ioannidis fired just wide.

Greece, ranked 41st in the world, had never beaten Germany in 10 previous meetings before Sunday. The win followed their 2-1 victory over Serbia on Thursday and lifted Ivan Jovanović's side back to the top of Group A2 with six points from two matches. Germany sit third with a single point, having drawn 1-1 with the Netherlands in Klopp's first game in charge.

Klopp shrugged off the result at the final whistle, reflecting on his own long career in the dugout.

«I’ve lost far more matches in my life than I would have liked … but as long as you draw the right conclusions, a loss is ultimately just a piece of information – no different from a win. We absolutely need these kinds of matches – they are exactly the games we wanted to have, has been very clear about what he wants – as players, we need to implement it».

Kourbelis's winning goal came just three days after Greece had beaten Serbia to open their campaign, and it was he who summed up how far the group table had shifted in that short span.

«Everything is happening so quickly. You just don’t realise what can happen in the space of a week. It’s also great that we managed to win here».

Nmecha, who has scored twice for Germany since joining the squad in June, was among those unable to find a breakthrough against a deep-sitting Greek side. Klopp, 59, took the job in July on a four-year deal after Julian Nagelsmann resigned following Germany's exit to Paraguay at the World Cup; his side are now winless in four matches since beating Ivory Coast in the group stage in the summer.

Greece host the Netherlands on Thursday, while Germany face Serbia at home, needing the points to lift themselves off the bottom of the group.