Germany scored early in the match and managed hold on in dispatching an underperformed France team to move into semifinal. The match promised to be a high scoring one but ended with barest of margin.
The high voltage match of the two top football playing nation to be exact failed to live up to the billing. The quality of football that is expected in a match of two top football playing nation playing for spot for semifinal was just not there.
Nevertheless both the teams did lot of running, engineered plenty of moves but somehow the spark was not missing. May be high humidity and hot condition took toll on the energy of the players.
Germans implemented the plan of taking early lead and sit back letting France come back to them in efforts to exploit the vacant space with their eagle eyed strikers in counter attacks. The European League Connections of so many players of either side failed to produce the quality the match deserved.
German team for this match talked a lot of their seriousness and positive intension. Thomas Mueller and Miroslav Kolse were in starting eleven meant that Germany intended to kill the match early on attacking France with all guns blazing.
France won the World Cup when it was played on their home soil. In this championship they arguably played even better than that time and have won three matches and drew one. The Germans have more world championship titles than France but looked a little less formidable having two wins and two draws.
Germany struggled in the Round of 16 and only after extra time they have eliminated Algeria, while France also played against an African team and it defeated Nigeria by two goals scored in the finish of the match. Out of their three head-to-head matches at World Cups the Germans won two and the French one.
Before the match France and Germany played 25 times against each other before. France won 11, Germany 8, and 6 matches ended in a draw. There were 83 goals scored in total. France scored 41 of those and Germany 42.
Germany started this World cup as one of the top contenders to lift the cup. Over the years there has been only very few teams which could match Germany's consistent performance at the World Cup. This world cup is also exception. Algeria a team of lesser reputation than Germany almost shocked and awed them in the match of group 16.
Germany could not score any goal over the first 90 minutes of play. The first goal came only during the extra-time when André Schürrle took his team ahead. Mesut Özil scored another at the 120th minute of the match and sealed it for Germany.
Abdelmoumene Djabou, on the other hand, scored a goal for Algeria at 120 minute 58 second to make it 2-1, and exposed the vulnerability of German defence.
France has been one of the most consistent teams in this World Cup. It scored several goals in group stages, including 8 in its first two matches. However, its match against Nigeria remained a deadlock for the major part of it. French strikers who were quite successful in their earlier ventures looked unconvincing.
Even though France's last group match against Ecuador ended in a goalless draw, France attacked the opponent's goal several times. However the Flying Eagles of Nigeria could restrict France through most part of the match. France's attack hardly looked menacing against Nigeria.
The first goal came at the 79th minute when Paul Pogba put his team ahead. Joseph Yobo's own goal at the 92nd minute made it 2-0. The last time France made the semifinals in a World Cup was in 2006, when they went all the way to the final where they lost to Italy.
First Half:
The high tension encounter kicked off amidst great expectations of both sides. Germany had early possession as France took a while to settle. Long ball from German defence started flowing towards Mueller and Kolse upfront.
But French defence looked leave no space from German Greyhounds seeking the goal early on. But very soon the match had spark ignition. Pogba and Benzama started running deep into German territory. Attacks and counter attacks enlightened the vociferous fans on the terrace.
13 minutes into the match Germany surged into lead. Kroos clipped a freekick into the area and Hummels leaped above the French defender to guide a header into the net from 10 yards! It was a well-flighted delivery and well-executed finish by Hummels.
Germany in the lead 1-0 and for the first time in this World Cup France went in arrears. The goal piqued France, who exerted a bit of pressure on the German box through crosses from Valbuena and Cabaye, but Germany defended without much ado. France appeared to be going to have to play with more fluency, tempo and imagination.
Many observers anticipated that France could get the upper hand in midfield - but the end of the first half it had not panned out like that, as Germany were on top there.
Matuidi found it especially difficult to exert any influence - and when he did enjoy a bit of time on the ball, he wasted it, over-hitting an intended pass to Benzema. On the 22nd minutes from a neat, quick-footed build-up by Germany, Klose was put through with a fine pass - but he failed to control the ball and then collapsed and appealed, rather desperately, for a penalty.
The referee disagreed. Germany was cranking up the pressure. Their movement was making France look stodgy at times. Few minutes later Muller almost connected with a through-ball but Lloris rushes off his line to foil them.
On the 27th minute after much Teutonic tika-taka, France regained possession and Valbuena tried to launch a quick counter-attack, but the attack could not rip open the heart of the German defence.
Till the mid of the first half Germans had more of the ball possessions. Not that it was one way traffic though. France played the first half well within their strength. Their infrequent moves into German. Territory was effectively cut out before these could threaten for equalizer.
On 33rd minute Germany were caught out by a ball over the top. Griezman rushed on to it and cross for Valbuena, whose shot on the bounce from the left was saved with one hand by Neuer!
But the ball fell into the path of Benzema, who attempted to bundle it into the net from five yards - but Hummels blocked it. On 36 th minutes France appeared to be starting to gain a greater foothold in midfield, Pogba feinted and rolled his way past Schweinsteiger, but could not deliver the final strike.
Germans succeeded in managing to hold on to their solitary goal lead till the end of first half but over the last 10 minutes France showed urgency and some opportunities. Match is not over yet by any means.
Second Half:
The game opened up a lot more in the second with France continuing to threaten for the equalizer. On the On n the 47minute the German midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger first failed to clear from a low cross, but followed up his first error with a rather pointless challenge into the back of Valbuena's legs inside the box.
The France forward didn't make much of it though. On 50 th minute Schweinsteiger applied slightly less pressure with a similar challenge on Valbuena - but this time concedes a free-kick.It almost proveed costly though, as a free-kick lofted into the box just evaded the head of the unmarked Sakho as Neuer collects.
The Liverpool defender was well offside but the flag had stayed down. Moments later a long ball fell over the shoulder of Griezmann inside the box, but in trying to control the ball he could only allow the ball to bounce off his knee and into Neuers's arms.
France could keep pace with Germany throughout the game, and the second half remained pretty even. France came more and more to Germany seeking the equalizer but till 80 th minute Germany could manage to keep the French forwards at bay. France could at least ask questions of Neuer in the second half, but the German keeper did not have to make any outstanding save at all French attacks fizzed out to friendly fire before those reached the keeper.
Benzama went very near to equalizer in the dying minute of the match but German keeper stood firm Germany won 1-0 through an early goal.
The rest of the match had frustratingly too little of note. Germany crossed French hurdle comfortably at Hitler’s army could invade and walk over France easily in the Second World War. Germany as expected marched on.
German camp reported of virus flue infection before the match. But they are hardly stretched in the match in disposing off a less ambitioned France.
Germany also did not play anything extraordinary though they were better of the two in strategy and planning. Germany will possibly play Brazil in the semi final. They will have to play much better than what they did in this match or Brazil will punish them.
Germany: Neuer, Lahm, Hummels, Boateng, Howedes, Ozil (Gotze 83), Kroos, Schweinsteiger, Khedira, Muller, Klose (Schurrle 69).
France: Lloris, Debuchy, Varane, Sakho (Koscielny 72), Evra, Valbuena (Giroud 85), Pogba, Cabaye (Remy 73), Matuidi, Griezmann, Benzema.
BDST: 0105 HRS, JULY 5, 2014
