Second time in a row – Germany goes out after the group stage
Twice in a row is no coincidence – Germany wins against Costa Rica but still has to go home.
And once again it is a team from the Asian region that denies Germany a place in the last 16. Four years ago it was South Korea in a face-to-face duel, today it was Japan in a long-distance duel.
Regardless of today’s result, the German national team’s elimination on home soil is not unexpected.
Although they were superior to Japan in terms of statistics, they lost the game because they failed to convert their chances.
The match against Spain ended in a justified draw and was also justifiable against a nation like Spain.
Niclas Füllkrug’s last-minute goal gave the Germans the hero they had been looking for. The nation was all the more surprised when this hero was again on the bench against Costa Rica.
Costa Rica was exactly the animalistic opponent the Germans had expected. Here, too, the lead should have been much higher at half-time. This allowed Costa Rica to fight back briefly. A brace from substitute Kai Havertz allowed Germany to win the game, but the score in the parallel match meant they were still out of the group.
If the World Cup had not taken place under the circumstances in Qatar, the feedback for the national team would probably have been much worse from the fans. Although it is already crying out very loudly for change.
Calls for a boycott of the World Cup have always been loud in Germany, but they became even louder after the discussion about the One Love captain’s armband.
Now this discussion should be over but the embarrassment remains.
Germany is no longer the team that brought home the title in the summer of 2014 and the World Cup hero Mario Götze could not change that.
It will be interesting to see how this team develops in the coming weeks and months.
Will Hansi Flick remain coach of the national team? Many teams would change their coach after this result.
Thomas Müller is also questioning whether he will wear the national team jersey again after his hints following the German exit.
In any case, something has to change in the team until the EUROS to prevent the next disgrace at home.