World Cup: Group F: South Korea vs. Germany, Mexico vs. Sweden; 6/27/2018

[Wee Baby Seamus]

Only thing I hate about the World Cup: everyone for three weeks is a soccer expert.

Conversation I just had at work:

"Germany got eliminated, the defending champions are out!"
"Yep, happened about two hours ago."
"That never happens, I don't remember the last time the defending champions got eliminated before the sudden death games!"
"It happened last time. And the time before. It happens super often. It's happened four of the past five times."
"Oh, well, I don't really follow it"

 

[hockeykicker]

 

[Evilo]

Not fair to blame Low only.
Plenty of german players have lots of questions to answer.

 

[Live in the Now]

Not fair to blame Low only.
Plenty of german players have lots of questions to answer.

Yep, Muller, Draxler, and Hummels were clownish in their games. To put it nicely. Kroos scored a golazo and stunk. Werner stunk.

Still, I think that it is likely Germany could have advanced if Low picked a different squad or used Brandt more. Definitely not favorites though and that's where the players need to be blamed, because I would have brought the all the players who were bad.

 

[Corto]

Thing is, some of these player may just not be world beaters. Werner is still more potential than the finished project, same for Goretzka and Rudy.

Either way, very disappointed in Germay, deservedly out.

Fair play to Korea, and gratz to Sweden, really glad they made it.

 

[Dr Pepper]

Where was Gotze, was he injured?

 

[Paulie Gualtieri]

Thing is, some of these player may just not be world beaters. Werner is still more potential than the finished project, same for Goretzka and Rudy.

Rudy is 28. And he barely even played.

 

[Drivesaitl]

Yep, Muller, Draxler, and Hummels were clownish in their games. To put it nicely. Kroos scored a golazo and stunk. Werner stunk.

Still, I think that it is likely Germany could have advanced if Low picked a different squad or used Brandt more. Definitely not favorites though and that's where the players need to be blamed, because I would have brought the all the players who were bad.

Hummels had a painful neck injury. Seen some reports of even a possible slipped disc. For him to even be in this match today, and not to mention nearly scoring 3 times on headers, of all things, is heroic overall, injuries occur. His pride was on display fullstop. I can't even imagine taking on headers so often and playing so much with the neck pain. Most would be pretty reluctant to even try a header with that injury. But there is he getting his head on a ball 3 times and better than anybody else was doing despite missing target.

Agree with the other player assessments.

Werner only played around 20 mins of the group stage that I liked. he was creative towards the end against Sweden.

But as others have mentioned a lot of the German answers weren't here, or weren't playing a lot.


That said sports and football are cruel. Germany came an inch multiple times from getting better result against Mexico hammering the uprights twice.

Tons of chances against Sweden, tons against Korea.

But when it all goes wrong in a first game it spells often what thee tournament will look like.

 

[Bure80]

Not fair to blame Low only.
Plenty of german players have lots of questions to answer.

Well Löw spoke before the first game with Reus. He told him that the WC is along tournament and that they need him later. Thats arrogant. Its no wonder some players dont show 100%.

 

[Drivesaitl]

Where was Gotze, was he injured?

Not selected. Has not played as well since the last WC as is the case with Schurrle, and several Germans that did play.

Nothing corrupts like success.

Look at Maradona.


jk aside winning the WC is more than a curse. Emotionally how do you climb the pinnacle, win it all, and have the same focus and conviction in life?

Or how do you score the WC winning goal and ever be the same again?

What would life be like for Goetze after scoring that goal and knowing that nothing else you ever touch in life will ever be as big as that and that you are 22.

Pretty good I guess but its literally impossible after a moment like that to sustain excellence. Moments like that are bigger than anybody and change everything.

 

[c9777666]

Even the Pens didn’t look this bewildered in their failed title defense

 

[Tomas W]

Thats what happens when you dont respect your opponents, im sure Germany thought it would be an easy group to win.

Thet absolutely did. Which feels great to think of. Just like the Italians, just like the Dutch. Easy peasy they thought.

 

[Drivesaitl]

Well Löw spoke before the first game with Reus. He told him that the WC is along tournament and that they need him later. Thats arrogant. Its no wonder some players dont show 100%.

Looks like Khedira and Germany does need those tickets home today after going out in group. Swedish reporter getting any callbacks?

sigh


At least now Low will be gone, some new focus and path for Germany and the next plan. This one was done. Even if Germany had advanced how far were they going with this lineup, play, and conviction?

This wasn't even like watching a Germany National side.

The worst World Cup performance ever for Germany, after what was likely the best. The way it invariably goes.

In the end you remember the victory, not this. At least we got that and 3 in my lifetime. I'll take it.

 

[TheMoreYouKnow]

There weren't really 'tons of chances' in any of the matches. There were a couple in each of them. A lot of balls into the box that went nowhere. The team probably looked best going forward in the first 15 and last 20 of the Sweden match.
Note that our little genius 'Magnificent Mesut' wasnt on the pitch then.

Ozil is not the reason Germany are out, but he was also not some heroic figure trying to stem the tide of defeat on his own. He was just another underperformer on a team full of them.

We're only talking about Ozil because some fanboys in anticipation of the criticism went out of their way to preemptively white knight for Magnificent Mesut. Kroos was crap for the majority of the tournament, Werner simply shouldn't be the starter in games vs deep-sitting opposition or at least put him on the wing not upfront. Mueller disappointed throughout. Reus was okay vs Sweden, crap today. Goretzka didn't look like the worst but also didn't stand out positively. Plenty of blame to go around for a lot of people.

 

[Drivesaitl]

The German players and team were a ghost of their 2010 or 2014 WC performances. Simply not at peak, and for several players that made the team they made on basis of 2014, and not on performance since then. Indeed isn't this one of the problems of success and winning, that there is often adherence to a roster that no longer have it.

It is quite odd too for Low and company to know Khedira, Ozil don't have it and to end up benching them in games after perhaps oddly selecting them.

The oddest thing being Sane not being here.

The strangest thing of all being that Muller went from golden boot in 2010 to looking like never scoring a goal in this tournament. He rarely even had an informed touch in this tournament. He was so bad someone not knowing history would wonder why he is playing for Germany or even on the pitch. This being Germany's downfall that the players they were depending on just weren't any good in the tournament. Some shouldn't have been expected to be.

 

[John Pedro]

hi, @cgf

 

[cgf]

Did you not notice how he was the only attacker who even looked back at the midfield to see how helpless Toni was when a simple crossfield ball couldn't progress our possessions? There was at least a dozen Kroos to Özil 10-15 yard passes around the midfield line which would've become turnovers or sloppy 50/50s on one of the wings without Mesut bothering to read the play and make himself available for Kroos to make a forward pass to.

And despite spending so much time operating like an 8 (or deeper) because everybody else was busy standing around the korean backline & waiting, Mesut still would've pocketed a pair of assists if Gomez, Hummels & co. had finished

What more did you want? Him to pound his chest before the game? Or to command the team to ignore the braindead nosepicker and not set out with the idiotic idea that a Kroos-Khedira double pivot is anything but suicide?

Our best deep midfielders at this tourney have been Boateng, Özil & Hummels, in that order. It's a shame our idiot coach left the midfield so abandoned that none of them actually got to stay in the areas where they are accustomed to operating.

 

[cgf]

hi, @cgf

At least this will pressure Jogi to resign in a few days...since I'm now more convinced than ever that the FA will never fire that moron...

I don't even think Draxler played today.

...I still want him to retire from the NT...

 

[mouser]

Did they say why Group F got the earlier games and Group E the later games? Struck me as unusual, though they're doing the same thing tomorrow.

 

[Evilo]

I'd gladly remind cgf of his "Germany and 3 south american teams in the semis" and of his "I projected Germany to beat Mexico 4-1 because since they're not in form, they'll surrender a goal" and all that funny stuff, but since he must be quite disappointed, I'd like to tell him we still love him even after his outlandish homer opinions.

 

[cgf]

I'd gladly remind cgf of his "Germany and 3 south american teams in the semis" and of his "I projected Germany to beat Mexico 4-1 because since they're not in form, they'll surrender a goal" and all that funny stuff, but since he must be quite disappointed, I'd like to tell him we still love him even after his outlandish homer opinions.

I was hoping that if I wished hard enough for it to happen that Jogi might not be a complete moron this time...like in 2014...but once I saw the 23 he picked that became harder to believe in with much conviction. Especially given all of the time we spent playing 1 or 2 men down because Jogi insisted on giving Khedira's corpse & Draxler minutes.

But I do have plenty of crow to eat lol, so don't feel bad about giving it to me. I'm actually more optimistic than I've been since the boys got off the plane from Rio...as something like this is the best hope we have ever had of getting rid of Löw

It doesn't hurt that I'm still in that hopeful phase where I'm optimistic about the likes of Khedira, Müller & Draxler retiring from international football after that embarassment

 

[Sabresfansince1980]

Well Löw spoke before the first game with Reus. He told him that the WC is along tournament and that they need him later. Thats arrogant. Its no wonder some players dont show 100%.

Absolutely a failed mindset going in. Exactly what I meant before about taking friendlies and late qualifiers so lightly, tinkering with depth players and tactics, as if they can just show up and go through group stage less than 100%. Low did not identify his best XI, or get his best XI enough time on the pitch together. That should have been set BEFORE Austria, not AFTER Saudi Arabia. Of course, it didn't happen at all due to the lacking preparation.

 

[Drivesaitl]

My Hyundai is parked in the dark garage right now and getting no love. I'm not convinced I can even look at it today...

It might mock me with flashing warning lights, horn going off inexplicably or headlights knowingly winking.. oh, that's what it usually does..

Albeit OT, an attempt at errant humor.

I would prefer a Volkswagen camper van but we can't get them here and they haven't been available here or manufactured for a long time. sob

 

[John Pedro]

Kroos going five-hole to set up Korea's goal was amazing.

 

[Drivesaitl]

Did you not notice how he was the only attacker who even looked back at the midfield to see how helpless Toni was when a simple crossfield ball couldn't progress our possessions? There was at least a dozen Kroos to Özil 10-15 yard passes around the midfield line which would've become turnovers or sloppy 50/50s on one of the wings without Mesut bothering to read the play and make himself available for Kroos to make a forward pass to.

And despite spending so much time operating like an 8 (or deeper) because everybody else was busy standing around the korean backline & waiting, Mesut still would've pocketed a pair of assists if Gomez, Hummels & co. had finished

What more did you want? Him to pound his chest before the game? Or to command the team to ignore the braindead nosepicker and not set out with the idiotic idea that a Kroos-Khedira double pivot is anything but suicide?

Our best deep midfielders at this tourney have been Boateng, Özil & Hummels, in that order. It's a shame our idiot coach left the midfield so abandoned that none of them actually got to stay in the areas where they are accustomed to operating.

Its indeed a shame that Boateng and Hummels were required to be the best players all over the pitch in the games they played in. Or that Hummels with a neck injury and reported slipped disc was way up front pounding headers in the general direction of the net.

Really where was anybody else. This was a squad that looked interested in going home for the most part. I'm still wondering what Kimmich does, Saw 20minutes all tournament of Werner doing something.

ps I thought Gomez was contractually obligated not to score for Germany. Or its been my longterm impression that he's secretly playing for Spain. Or Mexico..

Bolded, haha.