Nicolò Tresoldi hat-trick leads Germany U21 to 4-1 victory over Malta

Early setback and swift recovery

The German Under-21 national team secured a 4-1 victory against Malta at the Centenary Stadium in Attard on Wednesday. The hosts took an unexpected lead in the 9th minute when forward Basil Tuma capitalized on a defensive mistake. German debutant Noahkai Banks lost possession near the halfway line, allowing Tuma to run clear and beat debutant goalkeeper Max Weiß. Germany responded two minutes later when Leandro Morgalla struck the post, allowing Nicolò Tresoldi to slot home the rebound. Tom Rothe then gave Germany the lead in the 32nd minute, heading the ball in after a scrambled passage of play on the artificial surface.

Captaincy and scoring milestones

Tresoldi wore the captain's armband from the start for the first time, stepping in for Tom Bischof after Bischof departed to join the senior German national squad. Before kickoff, the 22-year-old Club Brugge forward expressed his ambition on television.

Let's see how many goals I can score today, hopefully many.

Tresoldi delivered on that objective by scoring twice more in the second half, finding the net in the 47th and 69th minutes to complete his hat-trick. The three goals brought his international tally to 16 goals in 26 Under-21 appearances. With that total, Tresoldi overtook senior team sporting director Rudi Völler and moved into third place on the German Under-21 all-time scoring list. Only Pierre Littbarski with 18 goals and Heiko Herrlich with 17 goals remain ahead of him.

Lineup changes and player decisions

Head coach Antonio Di Salvo made eight changes to his starting lineup following a 4-0 away win against Latvia on Saturday. Only Tresoldi and attacking teammates Paris Brunner and Dzenan Pejcinovic retained their places in the starting eleven. New additions included Augsburg defender Banks and Burnley goalkeeper Weiß, both making their debuts for the team. Despite captaining the side in Attard, Tresoldi has not committed his long-term international future to Germany, with a final decision between Germany and Italy planned for the summer. After the final whistle, Tresoldi reflected on the match and his leadership role.

That is definitely something special for me. In the end, three points are the most important thing.

Qualification scenarios for Euro 2027

The victory in Malta marked Germany's eighth win in nine matches during the qualifying campaign. Malta had managed just one goal across their previous eight qualifiers and previously lost 6-0 to Germany in Fürth in November 2025. Di Salvo's team requires one more win to confirm first place in the group and qualify directly for the 2027 European Under-21 Championship in Albania and Serbia. That tournament, running from 16 June to 3 July 2027, also serves as the European qualifying pathway for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. Germany will host Georgia in Bielefeld on Tuesday at 18:00 to conclude the group stage, though qualification could be sealed early if second-placed Greece loses to Latvia on Thursday.