Joshua Kimmich hails impact of substitutes after Germany’s comeback win over Côte d'Ivoire | OneFootball

At 1-0 down against Côte d'Ivoire in Saturday's World Cup match in Toronto, Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann reacted by making a triple substitution after an hour.

Two of the substitutes later combined for Germany's equaliser, as Nadiem Amiri set up Deniz Undav before the latter decided the game in Germany's favour, making it 2-1 with his second goal late on.

Speaking to Magenta TV, Joshua Kimmich hailed the impact of the players who came on in the second half.

“We already knew before the tournament that our bench would be very, very important and decisive. That was the case today," Kimmich said. 

"All the substitutions were outstanding today. Especially Deniz [Undav], who always believes in his moments. Nadiem [Amiri] brings his mentality, which was very helpful. Toni [Rüdiger] had an outstanding game when he came on. Jamie [Leweling] also came on very well, and the same goes for Leon [Goretzka] at the end. The triple substitution (after around 60 minutes) helped us a lot.”

It was the second time in a row that Undav came on to score, having also done so in Germany's opening 7-1 win over Curacao.

“He believes in himself, believes in his moments, and that is what he radiates. Even if things in training aren’t always perfect, he is someone who trusts his moments and believes in the impact he can have," Kimmich said. 

"Every time he gets the ball, he feels he can decide the game with every action. That is very, very important to have in a player coming off the bench. Sometimes 30 minutes are enough to make an impact, and Deniz showed that exceptionally well on two occasions.”