These two nations may be geographic neighbours, but they could not be much further apart in terms of footballing pedigree. The eight-time winners faced a Poland team making their debut on Europe’s biggest stage, with all the pre-match statistics seemingly pointing to a comfortable DFB-Frauenteam victory.
Still, there were early chances for both sides, as Klara Bühl tested the water early on when her angled strike went narrowly wide, before Emilia Szymczak ghosted into the box unmarked from Adriana Achcińska's free-kick and fired over the bar.
The end-to-end nature of the match continued, and Kinga Szemik was forced into a solid stop at her near post to Jule Brand. Her German counterpart - Ann-Katrin Berger - was almost involved in a sticky situation moments later, but had her blushes spared by the linesman’s flag after gifting the ball to Natalia Padilla for a one-on-one chance.
It was a challenging first half for Christian Wück’s side, who lost captain Giulia Gwinn to injury after her excellent last-ditch tackle to deny Ewa Pajor.
Germany had a sustained spell of pressure after the break, but were marshalled well by Nina Patalon’s defensively drilled outfit.
Something special appeared to be needed to break the deadlock, and it came in the 52nd minute through Brand. It was her first goal at a major tournament, and Germany's first at the Women's Euros from outside the box since 2017. Carlotta Wamser played in the Wolfsburg midfielder, who unleashed an unstoppable left-footed strike past Szemik.
Somehow, Sjoeke Nüsken failed to double their lead when she inexplicably headed wide from point-blank range after meeting Bühl's cross.
Brand added an assist to go with her goal in the 68th minute, floating in a delightful cross for Lea Schüller to nod home and kick the stuffing out of the plucky Poles.
They more than played their part in this contest though, and Berger made a superb stop to parry away Pajor’s header from Dominika Grabowska’s delivery.
Ultimately, Germany did enough to claim all three points, but Wück will be hoping for a more convincing display from his side when they face Denmark next Tuesday.
Meanwhile, this defeat for Poland ends an 11-match unbeaten run dating back almost a year. Patalon’s team have a chance to bounce back against Sweden - also next Tuesday.
Flashscore Player of the Match: Jule Brand (Germany)