A late goal from a Bayern Munich star to seal a comfortable win. It's a familiar script for Germany. Only this time the player, Michael Olise, was French. Olise tapped in to an empty net amid a mixup involving a man soon to join him in Munich, Jonathan Tah, and set the final score after Kylian Mbappe scored France's opener shortly before half time.

It was a deflating end to a Nations League campaign that has shown the good and bad sides of a Julian Nagelsmann's developing team. While big wins over Bosnia and Herzogovina and Hungary and a entertaining quarterfinal win over Italy capitalized on the positive feeling that emerged at the home European Championships in 2024, this loss —and that to Portugal on Wednesday — are evidence that Germany are not quite back at the top table of international football.

"We should have been 3-0 up after six minutes. Then we somehow lost the structure. Then, of course, it's a perfect game for the French with their many counterattacks," said captain Joshua Kimmich to German broadcaster RTL. While it's true that Germany started strongly, they also failed to take opportunities early on, again highlighting the longstanding lack of a clinical striker.

Germany wasteful

"We must score against such top teams. But the approach was good," said Nagelsmann. “We showed that we can create against top teams despite missing several players."

At the other end of the pitch, one of the few Germany players to emerge from Sunday's defeat with some credit was goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen, who repelled several of France's counterattacks with some excellent saves.

The 33-year-old has had to be patient in waiting for his chance with the national team. But the recent retirement of veteran Manuel Neuer has finally made the Barcelona man first choice, according to Nagelsmann.

"We’ve often emphasized that Marc is our number one. He’s in top shape in training - [Barcelona coach] Hansi Flick has confirmed that to me as well," Nagelsmann explained on recalling the goalkeeper after injury. "He’s in great form, and we need him in the group."

"He hasn't played that many games yet, but of course he's still at an age where he doesn't need that mega rhythm right now. If he was 22 or 23 now, we'd have to worry about that. But he has a lot of experience."

Banished from Barcelona?

While ter Stegen's form did appear to be strong, the lack of games at club level looks like a growing concern. Having returned from a serious knee injury in early May, ter Stegen has largely been ignored by former Germany boss Flick at Barcelona in favor of Polish veteran, Wojciech Szczesny, originally signed as an emergency replacement for ter Stegen. With Barcelona on the verge of signing Espanyol keeper Joan Garcia to be their new first choice, ter Stegen looks set to be third choice for his club with the World Cup a year away.

Reports carried by Spanish publication SPORT suggest ter Stegen is furious about the situation and willing to "go to war" to ensure he isn't forced out of the club. His relationship with his compatriot Flick, who preferred Neuer during his time in charge of Germany's national team, has also reportedly deteriorated of late.

Oliver Baumann and Alexander Nübel, the two keepers who deputized for ter Stegen in Germany games during his absence, are both inexperienced at the top level. This makes it likely that Nagelsmann will give time to ter Stegen, especially given his performance against France.