From a very humiliating win against Portugal, to embarrassing hosts Brazil, Germany’s route to the World Cup
final.
If Germany’s run to the
final of World Cup 2014
has taught us anything,
it’s that the bigger the
challenge, the better
Joachim Low’s men play.
It’s fair to say that Philipp Lahm and Co. are
no flat-track bullies. They have looked
uncomfortable taking on the weakest teams in
the World Cup, yet utterly ruthless when faced with
one of the big boys.
They certainly laid down an early marker by
routing Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal 4-0 in
their Group G opener, with Thomas Muller
helping himself to a hat-trick in Salvador.
Pepe’s typically senseless dismissal no doubt
aided their cause but the three-time
champions were already 2-0 up at that point
and well on their way to a convincing win.
However, they looked anything but assured in
their next outing, against Ghana. Luckily,
while Miroslav Klose is not as agile as he once
was, he has not lost his predatory instincts
and he netted from close range to not only
earn his side a precious point, but also join
Brazil icon Ronaldo on 15 World Cup goals.
Muller, though, scored the winner in 1-0
defeat of United States to remind everyone
that it seems only a matter of time before
that particular record belongs to him.
However, another lacklustre team display
against allegedly inferior opposition raised
question marks over Germany’s ability to go
all the way, not least because of the continued
deployment of Lahm, a full-back by trade, in
midfield.
A nervy extra-time win over Algeria did
nothing to wipe off those doubts; indeed, they
only intensified. However, spirits were finally
lifted by an unspectacular but encouragingly
solid and undeniably deserved 1-0 win over
France that came courtesy of a goal from
Mats Hummels but was more notable for the
return of Lahm to his regular right-back
berth.
And then came Belo Horizonte. Irrespective of
the outcome of Sunday’s final, the demolishing of Brazil
will forever be remembered as one of the most
significant dates in Germany’s sporting
history. In what must go down as the single
biggest shock the World Cup has ever seen,
Low’s team inflicted a humiliating and
record-breaking 7-1 defeat upon their hosts,
the five-time champions of the world.
After striking early through Muller, Germany
ended the game as a meaningful contest by
netting four times in the space of six minutes
before the half-hour mark, with Klose’s
effort allowing him to take outright possession
of the all-time goals record.
A Lionel Messi-led Argentina now lie in wait in
Rio but Germany already know full well that
the bigger they are, the harder they fall.