NUREMBERG, Germany (AP) Sandro Wagner scored a hat trick on his second appearance for Germany as the defending champion maintained its perfect record in World Cup qualifying with another rout of San Marino, 7-0 on Saturday.
Germany scored 27 goals in three previous games against the tiny microstate, and it was just a question of how many an unfamiliar looking lineup could score on this occasion.
Germany’s starting lineup came from 11 different clubs for the first time in 57 years as coach Joachim Loew gave his experimental Confederations Cup squad another run-out.
Julian Draxler, one of only three members of Germany’s World Cup-winning squad called up for the tournament in Russia, captained the side on his 30th international appearance, and he opened the scoring with a curling effort inside the far post as the home side’s early pressure paid off.