Their afternoon could have got worse when Mathieu Debuchy challenged Klose in the box, only for referee Nestor Pitana to ignore the Germany appeals. It was the first time France had gone behind in the tournament and the first time they had conceded in the opening half. Germany had 59% possession in the first half but only 40% after the breakĭefeat marked the first time France have failed to reach the semi-final stage in their past six appearances in the knockout stage
Germany scored with their first shot on target and then hit only two more in the rest of the match Germany looked far more balanced than against Algeria in their last match, and a period of sustained pressure told when Hummels held off Varane to guide home a Toni Kroos free-kick. Philipp Lahm moved from midfield to right-back in place of Shkodran Mustafi, Sami Khedira coming into midfield, and there was a surprise start for 36-year-old Miroslav Klose in attack. Hummels returned to central defence after a bout of "flu-like symptoms", with Per Mertesacker unexpectedly the man to make way as Germany looked to contain France's quick forwards.
In the build-up, Low dismissed talk of France seeking revenge for 1982, when Germany goalkeeper Harald Schumacher escaped punishment for a brutal challenge on Patrick Battiston and went on to save two penalties as his side came through a shootout to reach the final.īut what could not be ignored was Germany's greater experience and, despite a reconfigured starting line-up and doubts over their health, they again showed their international pedigree. It is 60 years to the day since Germany overturned a two-goal deficit to upset Hungary in the 1954 final, and this will go down as another memorable day in their history. Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer gave another faultless performance and Joachim Low's men deserved their win against a France side who failed to hit the heights of earlier in the tournament. Germany dominated the midfield and dictated the pace of the game, while France were well off their own pace." They looked entertaining in the group stage but were beaten by a better team, with more experience at this level, who knew how to see out the game. Hummels got the better of Raphael Varane to score what proved to be the winning goal and Germany can now prepare for a meeting with Brazil in Belo Horizonte on Tuesday after the hosts beat Colombia.
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