Germany coach Joachim Low reflected on a job well done in Tallinn after his side overcame the early dismissal of Emre Can to beat Estonia 3-0 in their Euro 2020 qualifier.
Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan scored twice in the second half after the Juventus midfielder had been shown a straight red card for a professional foul.
Substitute Timo Werner added a third as Germany, who had been depleted by injuries, moved level on points with Group C leaders Holland and three clear of Northern Ireland.
“Firstly, I’m happy we got the job done. It was tough work out there,” Low said at his press conference.
“We had to regroup after the red card, the team did well after the break, we did not concede and scored three goals.
“The decisive factor was that we increased the tempo in the second half and kept calm.
“This week was not easy, with all the injuries and everything. We stayed calm and scored, so we are pleased.”
The German head coach had no complaints with Can’s dismissal.
After allowing the ball to run across him as he turned on the edge of the penalty area, former Liverpool midfielder Can made a rash sliding challenge to trip Frank Liivak as the Estonia forward looked to get clear on goal.
“Looking at the situation, you cannot award a yellow, it’s a red card,” Low said.
Veteran goalkeeper Manuel Neuer had replaced Marc-Andre Ter Stegen to captain Germany.
The Bayern Munich keeper felt the team had dealt well with the situation they found themselves in so early on.
“We were down to 10 men after 15 minutes, which makes everything more difficult as you have to reset,” Neuer said according to www.dfb.de.
“Because of that, I didn’t think it was a bad performance. It was a matter of time when the goals would eventually come. At some point we put them away.”
Estonia had been thrashed 8-0 in Mainz just four months ago.
Manager Karel Voolaid felt his side had produced a response.
“The fighting spirit was better than in Mainz, but it is the class of the opponent which beats us,” he told reporters.
“I really wanted a goal – for the team, for the audience, for the fans. I believed we could get some bravery from that.
“But let’s face it – if they were 11, we would have had a very, very hard fight.
“Even a 10-man Germany is very difficult to beat if they are organised in defence.”
