Bayern pros Joshua Kimmich, Sebastian Rudy and Niklas Süle celebrated as Germany sealed their first Confed Cup triumph on Sunday evening, whereas the final was a disappointing affair for Artuto Vidal. The 57,268 crowd in St. Petersburg saw the world champions win 1-0 over Copa América champions Chile in a thrilling final. Lars Stindl handed the young German team the lead against the run of play midway through the first half before Kimmich & Co upped the pace. The battling Germans survived a spell of intense Chile pressure in the closing stages.
Head coach Joachim Löw made one change to the team that downed Mexico 1-0 in the last four. Shkodran Mustafi replaced Benjamin Hendrichs, featuring in a back three, with Joshua Kimmich taking up station in midfield. New Bayern signing Sebastian Rudy featured in central midfield, whereas Niklas Süle came on in added time. Chile head coach Juan Antonio Pizzi fielded the XI that beat Portugal on penalties in the last four.
Germany survive spell of Chile pressure
Vidal & Co applied pressure from the start, as they did in the group match against Germany. The Munich midfielder was a constant menace, unleashing a 19th-minute long-range effort. Löw's troops soon made the most of a mistake by former Bundesliga pro Marcelo Diaz, Timo Werner inviting Stindl to tap in against the run of play.
The lead galvanised the Germans, Leon Goretzka and Julian Draxler missing presentable chances before half-time. Draxler almost doubled the lead after the restart. The second half was a rough affair, with Kimmich, Rudy and Vidal seeing yellow yards. Chile upped the pressure in the closing stages, Vargas, Vidal, Aranguiz, Sagal and Sanchez missing presentable opportunities, but a goal refused to come against Germany and their dogged defending.
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