Nico Schulz, Julian Brandt Score as Germany Defeat Peru 2-1

A late goal from Nico Schulz gave Germany a 2-1 friendly win over Peru on Sunday at the Rhein-Neckar-Arena.

The visitors stunned the home crowd by taking the lead midway through the first half. Christian Cueva took advantage of sloppy defending to play in Luis Advincula, who beat Marc-Andre ter Stegen at his near post.

Germany responded quickly and were level three minutes later. Toni Kroos found Julian Brandt, and he neatly chipped the ball past goalkeeper Pedro Gallese.

The hosts wasted plenty of chances to move ahead, but they finally got the winner in farcical fashion with five minutes of normal time remaining.

Peru twice failed to clear the ball, and it fell to Schulz to fire goalward. Gallese should have saved his shot, as it lacked power, but it somehow squirmed underneath his body and trickled into the back of the net.

Brandt Stakes Claim In Sane's Absence

Bayer Leverkusen winger Brandt will have made an impression after a lively showing.

The 22-year-old was bright in the opening stages, offering both pace and width as the hosts attacked Peru.

He also showed composure in front of goal with a well-taken equaliser. Kroos fed the Germany No. 10, and he calmly dinked the ball over goalkeeper Gallese.

It was just his second goal at international level:

Germany barely used Brandt at the 2018 FIFA World Cup. He was something of a surprise inclusion ahead of Leroy Sane but only saw 19 minutes of action, per WhoScored.com.

Joachim Low did recall Sane to his squad, but the Manchester City winger missed the game after the birth of his daughter: 

It's unclear if Sane would have started the game after a difficult start to the season with City. Manager Pep Guardiola dropped him against Newcastle United and is concerned about his attitude, according to Goal's Sam Lee.

Meanwhile, Brandt appears to have taken full advantage of his chance and has given his international hopes a big boost with this display.

Ter Stegen Misses Big Chance to Impress

Barcelona goalkeeper Ter Stegen has developed into one of Europe's best goalkeepers at the Camp Nou but has had to play second fiddle to Manuel Neuer internationally.

He was given his first start for Germany since a friendly against Saudi Arabia in June on Sunday but missed a big chance to impress.

Die Mannschaft defended poorly for Peru's opening goal, but Ter Stegen must take some of the blame as he was beaten at his near post.

Ter Stegen did not play a minute at the World Cup, as Neuer went straight back into the team despite missing almost the entire season with a foot injury.

The Barcelona goalkeeper said before the tournament it was a "disappointing situation" to not be first choice, per Marca. 

Neuer hardly covered himself in glory at the World Cup, as he was caught upfield during their defeat to South Korea.

However, on this evidence, Ter Stegen may have to get used to more disappointment at international level.

Germany Still Lacking a Clinical Finisher

Germany's need for a clinical finisher in attack was highlighted once again, as they missed a host of chances against Peru.

Opta noted how the team have shared the goals around:

The first half saw Marco Reus, Timo Werner and Matthias Ginter all miss good opportunities to find the back of the net.

Low tried to change things at half-time. He sent on Julian Draxler for Reus, but it was a similar story after the break.

Werner fired over the bar after being sent clean through by Brandt. Even Germany's Twitter account was unimpressed with the striker's finish:

Nils Petersen was sent on and had a good opportunity but could not direct an effort on target after latching on to a loose ball. Thomas Muller also entered the fray in the closing stages, as Germany sought a winner.

The goal did eventually come, but it needed some awful defending for them to score. Twice Peru should have cleared the ball, while Gallese ought to have stopped Schulz's shot.

What's Next?

Germany are back in action in October when they face UEFA Nations League fixtures against the Netherlands and France. Peru's next match is a home friendly against Chile on Thursday, October 11.