Germany vs Côte d'Ivoire

Matchday two brings the heavyweight collision of Group E, and it carries an edge that typical Germany-versus-Africa narratives miss. The Ivorians have history with European opposition at World Cups: they drew 2-2 with Portugal in 2010 and pushed Colombia to the limit in 2014, never folding against superior reputations. Germany have not faced Côte d'Ivoire competitively — only a 2005 friendly that the Germans won 5-2 — but that was a different Ivorian era.

This version, sculpted by AFCON glory, arrives with genuine belief. Nagelsmann will likely shift to a double pivot to protect against transition damage, aware that Haller dropping deep can drag centre-backs into zones Adingra exploits with terrifying acceleration. The tactical subplot is whether Germany's fullbacks leave corridors that Sangaré can hit with one pass.

Côte d'Ivoire's qualifying path was not smooth; they needed a late goal against Senegal in the playoff round. But tournament football rewards peaking over consistency, and the Ivorians are serial peakers. Germany, for all their recent Nations League rehabilitation, have not won a knockout match at a World Cup since 2014.

The ghost of Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022 lingers. If Côte d'Ivoire can keep this tight beyond the hour mark, those ghosts will start whispering.