Adeyemi, Woltemade, and Krätzig shine in German U21 demolition of Estonia

A 3-1 win over Bulgaria from the Polish U21s in a concurrent kick-off meant that Antonio di Salvo's Germany U21s unfortunately weren't able to outright clinch qualification for the 2025 UEFA U21 European Championship on Tuesday evening. The team shall doubtless still be in a celebratory mood after demolishing their Estonia hosts in an 10-1 beatdown at the Kadriorg in Tallinn. German national team aspirant Karim Adeyemi helped his cause immensely with a hat trick. Nick Woltemade added two goals of his own. Woltemade's Stuttgart teammate Frans Krätzig recorded two assists.

Di Salvo made no changes to the XI that thrashed the Israeli U21s last Wednesday. A strong squad comfortably operating as a collective sought to keep up an undefeated record in the tournament qualification phase. The German U21s have not lost a match since their ignominious group stage exit from the 2023 U21 Euros. The team has won six and drawn one in the seven qualification fixtures since. 

The Germans were once again quick to establish dominance. Striker Nicola Tresoldi and buttressing attacker both forced saves out of Estonian keeper Kaur Kavila in the 7th minute. The Estonian back-stop was kept busy through the opening quarter-of-an-hour, having to make another strong save on Röhl in the 14th. To their credit, the Baltic hosts were able to tighten matters up defensively for a time. 

A pair of sloppy tackles in the box nevertheless led to Germany being awarded a penalty in the 22nd. New VfB signing Woltemade stepped forward to convert the 1-0 from the spot in the 23rd. Buoyed by the goal, di Salvo's men were able to effectively apply pressure again. The DFB-Juniors were rewarded with a goal at the half-hour-mark. Tresoldi polished off a Röhl cross on the 30th-minute 2-0. 

Five minutes after that, Adeyemi added the 3-0. The Borussia Dortmund attacker - recently recalled to the squad - impressively slotted home in the 35th despite being hassled by three markers. Woltemade and Tresoldi (with a cheeky leave) were both involved in the set-up work. Squad captain Eric Martel then got involved, bungling home his own rebound of a Rocco Reitz service off a short corner for the 39th minute 4-0.

Keeper Kivila continued to furnish heroic work, stopping a close-range-finish from Martel's Köln teammate Jan Thielmann in the 42nd. Two minutes later, however, Kivila proved powerless against a thunderstruck Adeyemi distance effort in the 44th. Adeyemi recorded his second brace in two consecutive fixtures on the 5-0 just before the end of the half. With the match effectively decided, di Salvo opted for three changes at the half.

Eintracht Frankfurt professionals Ansgar Knauff and Nathaniel Brown entered on behalf of Reitz and Luca Netz. U21 debutant Krätzig also replaced Martel. Brown immediately made his presence felt with an effort on goal shortly after the restart. Woltemade was on hand to dust off the 46th-minute 6-0 with an impressive finish of Brown's blocked shot from 15 meters out. 

The 7-0 in the 59th was a co-production from two new U21 additions. Rising SC Freiburg central defender Max Rosenfelder headed home Krätzig's corner service. The new Bundesliga regular was aided slightly by the fact that no member of the opposing team bothered to mark him. Krätzig registered another assist on the 8-0 two minutes later. Adeyemi completed his hat trick with a slick 61st minute finish on the turn. 

A consolation goal from Estonian sub Aleksandr Sapovalov in the 69th regrettably ended up robbing DFB-keeper Jonas Urbig of a shutout. The German guests nonetheless remained involved in the game. Krätzig collected his third assist of the night in the 87th, supplying the long ball on substitute Tim Lemperle's 9-1. Not to be outdone by his VfB colleague, Woltemade then assisted Knauff's 10-1 in the 90th.