Juergen Klopp Secures First Win as Germany Boss While Portugal Triumph Over Denmark

Germany national team coach Jurgen Klopp celebrated his first victory on Thursday, guiding his side to a 2-0 Nations League win over Serbia. Meanwhile, Portugal shrugged off the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo to defeat Denmark, and the Netherlands staged a comeback from two goals down to draw 2-2 with Greece.

Klopp completely overhauled his starting XI from the team that previously lost to Greece, handing debuts to goalkeeper Jonas Urbig and winger Derry Scherhant. Germany launched wave after wave of attacks, eventually breaking the deadlock in the 39th minute when Florian Wirtz set up Tom Bischof for his first senior national team goal in just his second cap. Although Nick Woltemade missed a golden opportunity at the back post, Wirtz doubled the lead shortly after the hour-mark with a clinical finish from the edge of the box. This result brings much-needed relief to Klopp, who earned his first win at the third attempt since returning to management.

In another fixture, Greece nearly secured three consecutive wins but conceded a late equalizer at home against the Netherlands. First-half goals from Fotis Ioannidis and Giorgios Masouras put the hosts ahead, before Virgil van Dijk reduced the deficit before the hour-mark, and Tijjani Reijnders equalized a minute before full-time.

Portugal played their first match since Cristiano Ronaldo walked out on the squad, which has cast doubt on his international future. Jorge Jesus' side worked hard for a 4-2 victory in Denmark, maintaining a perfect record with nine points to top Group A4. Goals from Joao Cancelo and Goncalo Ramos were twice canceled out by Danish equalizers from Mikkel Damsgaard and Rasmus Hojlund. However, Portugal secured the win thanks to a 67th-minute strike from Vitinha and a late fourth goal by Joao Felix.

Elsewhere, goals from Dan James and Neco Williams gave Wales a 2-1 victory over 10-man Norway for their first points of the campaign. In League B, the match between Ireland and Austria in Dublin saw a brief stoppage due to tennis balls thrown onto the pitch in protest over Ireland playing Israel in a previous fixture. Troy Parrott scored twice for Ireland, but they were ultimately held to a 2-2 draw, with their upcoming 'home' match against Israel scheduled to take place behind closed doors in neutral Serbia.