Clinical Germany cruise past Belarus

Germany are one win away from qualifying from UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifying Group 1 with a 100% record after a clinical second-half performance secured a 3-0 victory against Belarus.

Rainer Adrion's side secured qualification as group winners with a defeat of Greece in February, so little more than pride and their winning streak were on the line in Rostock.

Still, they dominated from the off, with Moritz Leitner leading the assault on the deep Belarusian defence. Only a matter of centimetres were between his early 25-metre shot and the left upright, while he came even closer later in the half, smacking the crossbar from the left side of the penaly area.

The German pressure told after the restart, as forward Maximilian Beister scored his fourth goal in eight qualifiers, tucking in Leitner's cross from close range on 57 minutes. Borussia Dortmund's Leitner then turned scorer seven minutes later, converting a penalty after Aleksandr Anyukevic's handball.

With 15 minutes left on the clock, Sebastian Polter made it three, finishing off Patrick Herrmann's pinpoint cross from the left. There was still time for Belarus to have their best chance of the match, but Kirill Premudrov somehow contrived to miss an open target from five metres out with four minutes remaining. That ensured Germany racked up a seventh clean sheet of an impressive campagn.