HAMBURG, Germany: Thomas Müller scored the winning goal as Germany recovered from a goal down to beat Romania 2-1 and continue its winning start under new coach Hansi Flick in World Cup qualifying on Friday.
Romania took the lead with a ninth-minute goal from Ianis Hagi, the first Germany conceded in four games under Flick. Germany bounced back as Serge Gnabry leveled early in the second half before Müller’s winning header in the 81st.
Germany extended its lead at the top of Group J to six points from North Macedonia and Armenia and has won all four games since Flick took charge following a last-16 exit at the European Championship under his predecessor Joachim Löw.
Germany started strongly in front of a crowd of 25,000 in Hamburg and was awarded a penalty early on when Timo Werner and Andrei Burca tangled in the box. After a long wait for video review, with Joshua Kimmich standing over the ball on the penalty spot, the decision was overturned.
Germany still seemed stunned by the turnaround when Hagi, son of Romania great Gheorghe Hagi, knocked the ball between Antonio Rüdiger’s legs and guided the ball just inside the far post.
Germany had plenty of chances to level the score, including a notable miss for Gnabry, before he blasted a low shot in the 52nd past goalkeeper Florin Nita.
A smartly worked corner yielded the winning goal as Leon Goretzka headed the ball on at the near post for Müller to put in at the far post.
North Macedonia moved up from fourth place to second with a 4-0 win over Liechtenstein. The Balkan nation aims to follow up its first European Championship campaign this year with a first trip to the World Cup.
Another team bidding to reach a first World Cup, Armenia is level on points with North Macedonia after drawing with Iceland 1-1 after Kamo Hovhannisyan’s goal was canceled out for Iceland by Isak Bergmann Johannesson.
Germany beats Romania to continue winning start under Flick
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Germany beats Romania to continue winning start under Flick
- Romania took the lead with a ninth-minute goal from Ianis Hagi, the first Germany conceded in four games under Flick
- Germany bounced back as Serge Gnabry leveled early in the second half before Müller's winning header in the 81st
Powerboat pilots primed for E1 Jeddah GP 2026
- Team Monaco and Sierra Racing Club joined the championship for the first time, adding further depth to the grid
- Event is organized by the Saudi Water Sports and Diving Federation in collaboration with the Union Internationale Motonautique (UIM)
JEDDAH: Pilots of the teams participating in the opening round of the third season of the E1 Series, the world’s first all-electric raceboat championship on the Red Sea in Jeddah from January 23 – 24, have expressed their readiness for the event.
The Jeddah GP 2026 will feature a record of 10 teams racing the cutting-edge E1 RaceBirds, underlining the rapid growth of the championship and its ambitions as a global competition spanning four continents.
Team Monaco and Sierra Racing Club joined the championship for the first time, adding further depth to the grid with a mix of experienced and emerging pilots.
The event is organized by the Saudi Water Sports and Diving Federation in collaboration with the Union Internationale Motonautique (UIM), under the supervision of the Ministry of Sport and is presented by the Public Investment Fund (PIF).
Ahead of the event, a press conference was held on Wednesday at the media center, appearing at the event was John Williams, Managing Director at E1 who shared the excitement and vision for the opening season for the UIM E1 World Championship and expressed his enthusiasm for the Jeddah round.
He told the media that E1 World Championship 2026 is looking ahead for another thrilling and exciting season, “We are delighted to restart racing here on the beautiful Red Sea in Jeddah as the E1 Jeddah GP once again brings together electric racing, elite teams and world-class pilots as the championship enters a new season.”
“We always love to come back to this beautiful city of Jeddah and hope we can bring excitement to our fans here in this part of the world and we are very excited for a great race.
He added that the vision for E1 has always been to inspire change through competition.
“With every season, E1 is not only growing as a sport but showing what’s possible when sport drives sustainability forward,” he said.
Williams also announced that the E1 race in partnership with Saudi Arabia introducing new initiatives as part of its social program, he said: “During this weekend we aim to inspire Saudi students aged 8 to 18 to explore science, technology, engineering and mathematics, as well as sustainability, through the lens of electric racing.”
Also attended, Rusty Wyatt of AlUla team, Tom Chiappe of team Rafael Nadal, Maxime Nocher of team Monaco, and Ieva Millere of team Drogba.
French professional pilot for Team Rafa, Tom Chiappe indicated that the team is gearing up for a new exciting season, “First of all, glad to come back to Jeddah and looking forward to competing and winning first place after we finished last season in second. I am really glad to start the season here in Jeddah and hope the E1 fans in Jeddah enjoy the race,” he said.
Canadian racer, Rusty Wyatt of team AlUla expressed his excitement to show what the team can achieve in front of so much local support and to make AlUla proud.
“It really feels like a home GP in Jeddah.
Following last year’s E1 Grand Prix in Jeddah, Wyatt was fortunate enough to spend a week in AlUla which he said was truly unforgettable.
Speaking about this season, He continued: “We have gone through a lot of work to get better and this year we have taking all the data and all that knowledge to become much better team. Our confidence level is really high and we are going to give it all best of us to gain pole position.”
As she is gearing up for the E1 series race in Jeddah, this year Ieva Millere piloting the innovative RaceBird for Drogba team after representing the Brazil team last year.
“I am so excited to be here in Jeddah for the third year in a row but this time I am with the Drogba team. We are really hoping to bring success for the team.”
Meanwhile, the pilot of team Monaco, French Maxime Nocher confirmed 2026 would serve as a learning season.
“It is the debut season for team Monaco and the goal is to gain experience and build something solid for the next season in 2027. However, we are ready to make an impact for our season,” he said.
