SB Nation World Cup World Cup 2010 -- Round of 16
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Germany's overpowering offense was on display once again on Sunday. A first-half goal from the foot of England's Frank Lampard wasn't called by the referees, and it was all Mannschaft after that.
Joachim Löw is starting his preparation for the quarterfinals, pulling Miroslav Klöse and Thomas Müller off in the 72nd minute and replacing them with Mario Gomez and Piotr Trochowski.
Klöse and Müller have combined for three goals today.
Fabio Capello has made his second substitution, bringing-on Emile Heskey for Jermain Defoe in the 71st minute.
Defoe has started the last two matches in place of Emile Heskey, who was Capello's complement for Wayne Rooney in England's starting Xi to start the tournament.
Defoe's best chance of the day came in the second half when he was played behind the German line only to see goalkeeper Manuel Neue beat him to the ball.
Thomas Müller's second goal in four minutes likely puts England out of the World Cup, with Germany now leading 4-1 in the match's 71st minute.
A counterattack started by a beautiful Sami Khedira long ball from his own area to the middle of England's half put Mesut Özil behind the defense along the attack's left. The midfielder cut into the box and rolled a ball across the goal, allowing Müller to run-on for an easy finish.
Germany remains ahead 4-1 with the match now in its 74th minute.
Germany is back ahead by two goals after right wing Thomas Müller scored in the 67th minute, giving Germany a 3-1 lead.
The Germans broke-out on a counter attack after a Frank Lampard free kick, with Bastian Schweinsteiger feeding Müller in the right of the penalty area. The German's strike from 15 yards out went off David James' elbow and in at the near post to restore the 2-0 lead Germany had before Matthew Upson's goal.
England has made the match's first substitution, bringing on Joe Cole for right wing James Milner in the 64th minute
It is Cole's second appearance of the tournament after controversially not appearing in either of England's first two matches.
England trails Germany 1-2 in the 67th minute.
A direct kick from Frank Lampard from 28-yards out has seen the England midfielder find the woodwork for the second time today, though until his previous shot that went in for a not-allowed goal, his shot hit the bar slush, merely giving Germany a scare in the 51st minute.
Lampard's shot dipped after passing over Manuel Neuer, who pulled his hand away from a ball he judged to be sailing over the bar.
England continues to trail Germany 2-1, now in the 55th minute.
After a settling-in period, Germany's speed and movement appeared too much for England, with the Nationalmannschaft taking a 2-0 lead after 32 minutes. But England quickly responded through Matthew Upson and Frank Lampard, though the latter's tying goal will controversially not count.
As calls for goal line technology have grown over recent years, they will reach an ambulance's howl after Frank Lampard's 38th minute chip over German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer hit the crossbar and landed around one yard over the goal line. However, the goal was not allowed, leaving England down a goal.
That German lead was built on goals from Miroslav Klose and Lukas Podolski. Klose's goal, his 12th career World Cup tally, came as a goal kick of Neuer sailed over and through the England defense, allowing the German striker to tap home the opener past an oncoming David James.
Lukas Podolski's goal came in the 32nd minute, with the left winger finishing into the far netting past James when the goalkeeper tried to meet the attacker eight yard out, to the left of goal.
England came back five minutes later, when a cross from Steven Gerrard found the head of Matthew Upson, who head the ball into a goal vacated by Neuer, who failed to come off his line in time to meet the ball.
But England, who went into half having held 62 percent of the possession, will remember the goal that wasn't before Upson's goal, with Lampard's neglected score leaving the Three Lions down 2-1 at halftime.
One minute after Matthew Upson brought England back within a goal of Germany, Frank Lampard scored to apparently make it 2-2; however, the England midfielder's chip over goalkeeper Manuel Neuer was not credited as a goal, though he shot off the bottom of the cross bar landed one yard behind the goal line.
Replays clearly showed two-to-three feet of grass between where the ball landed and the goal line, with Neuer unable to reach the Lampard's chip before it went against the bottom of the cross hair. The linesman, however, did not signal for the tying goal.
The match, now in first half stoppage time, remains Germany 2, England 1.
Three minutes after a Frank Lampard chance from four yards was barely saved by Manuel Neuer, Matthew Upson has headed home a Steven Gerrard ball to bring England to within one.
Gerrard put a ball in from 22 yards out, with the England center half rising for an easy, headed finish from eight yards out in the 37th minute.
England now trails by one, 2-1, with the match now in the 42nd minute.
Lukas Podolski has his second goal of the World Cup, finishing from the left of goal from seven yards out to give Germany a 2-0 lead, but as was the case with the preceding chance, Thomas Müller was at the center of the build-up.
Miroslav Klöse, having drifted wide right, played a ball for Müller, who passed a ball to his left as the defense moved to play him. Podolski was left alone to David James's right, eventually finishing into the far netting when the `keeper came out to meet him.
Germany leads 2-0.
In the 30th minute, Germany sliced open England defense and created an open chance on goal for Miroslav Klose, with a good read of the play by David James ultimately keeping England within one.
Thomas Müller played from the right wing to Sami Khedira, whose back heel pass hit a running Müller moving up the field. Müller drew the back line to him before playing Klöse through, only to have David James come off his line quickly and block the shot.
Germany was left with a 1-0 lead which has since gone to 2-0 with a Lukas Podolski goal. That update will be coming in a moment.
German goalkeeper Manual Neuer has a World Cup assist after heaving a long ball over the England defense, allowing Miroslav Klose to run onto his 12th career World Cup goal.
Klose's second goal of this year's tournament came as he got around John Terry when going for Neuer's ball. Klose had position on Matthew Upson and stabbed at a ball from 12 yards out, hitting it past an oncoming David James for Germany's opening goal.
The Germans lead England 1-0 in the 23rd minute.
Mesut Özil was put in behind the England defense in the match's fifth minute, left back Ashley Cole playing him onside for a ball that left John Terry chasing the attacking midfielder. At a sharp angle to the right of goal, Özil's shot from 5 yards out went off goalkepper David James's left leg and out for a corner kick.
Germany and England are scoreless in the 7th minute.
England coach Fabio Capello stays with the same lineup that beat Algeria, including Jermain Defoe partnering Wayne Rooney, Matthew Upson along side John Terry, and James Milner starting over Aaron Lennon.
Here is England's starting XI:
G - David James
LB - Ashley Cole
LCB - John Terry
RCB - Matthew Upson
RB - Glen Johnson
LW - Steve Gerrard
M - Gareth Barry
M - Frank Lampard
RW - James Milner
F - Jermain Defoe
F - Wayne Rooney
There are no surprises for Joachim Löw's Nationalmannschaft, who have Jerome Boateng and Bastian Schweinsteiger healthy for their quarterfinal match against Englang.
Here is Germany's starting XI:
G - Manuel Neuer
LB - Jerome Boateng
LCB - Arne Frierich
RCB - Per Mertesacker
RB - Philipp Lahm
M - Bastien Schweinstieger
M - Sami Khedira
LW - Lukas Podolski
AM - Mesut Özil
RW - Thomas Müller
F - Miroslav Klöse
Much of the discussion of this match-up centers around penalty kicsk, with England’s habit of being eliminated from major tournaments in shootouts starting with their 1990 and 1996 losses to Germany. While the excitement surrounding an England-Germany shootout would be worth the two hour wait, the chances of us getting there are slim, giving us reason to look at what will define the match in regulation time.
Soccer matches often come down to a battle of the midfield, and this match may be no exception. England must win individual, midfield battles before Germany can transition into attack, and if they do,England will be able to create instantaneous opportunities for Wayne Rooney and (possibly) Jermain Defoe.
If they don't, the favorites will continue their tendency to attack in waves, creating problems from their older, slower opposition.
Germany, Going Forward: A 21-year-old son of Turkish immigrants, attacking midfielder Mesut Özil has already transformed the German team. He is part of the new face of German football, a face of diversity that is also represented in this year’s team by players of Nigerian, Tunisian, Brazilian, Ghanaian, Spanish and Serbian descent. Most of those players have been parts of youth teams that have dominated Europe’s U-levels, with Özil’s contributions so influential that Joachim Löw and the senior set-up have switched to a modern 4-5-1/4-3-3 formation because of Özil’s ability to play the deployment’s high, attacking midfield position - a position (and player) Germany'd previously lacked.
This presence accounts for the Germany’s ability to attack in waves: Özil carrying the ball into the opposing half with Lukas Podolski and Thomas Müller on the wings, Miroslav Klöse pushing the line back to give his creator his room. When Germany's at full-speed -at their most dangerous - it's common to see a ball played behind the left back, Müller running on to it with Klöse going near post. Podolski will be alone on the weak side while Özil’s near the arc, ready to score a goal like the one he finished against Ghana. Philip Lahm can come in support, provide an outlet to eventual cross, potentially creating a goal like the one we saw against Australia.
When Germany enters the attacking third at full speed, this kind of attack becomes frighteningly difficult to stop. It's easy to say "don't let Müller get behind you," much harder to pull off when you're asking a left back to go from a stopped position, turn and run when his opposition's already baring down on him.
Strong central midfield play can stop the wave at the point of origin, with England midfielder Gareth Barry potentially making this match Özil’s most difficult of the tournament. If Barry can be on Özil when he receives the ball, the defensive midfielder can keep his opponent from turning, moving up the pitch, and putting Barry and Frank Lampard in positions where their lack of foot speed will have to keep-up with Germany’s attackers.
England, Going Forward: Until Jermain Dafoe’s goal against Slovenia, there were questions as to how England was going to score. Their only previous goal came as a result of a defensive breakdown by the United States. For the final 86 minutes against the States and the full ninety against Algeria, England’s attack seemed to consist of playing through Wayne Rooney only to see the all-world forward turn the ball over to a defender.
But after James Milner’s cross to Dafoe against Slovenia, England seems to have hope in an alternative. Though some numbers show almost all of Milner’s crosses failed to find their target, there is an optimism built from the one that did. Against a German central defense that is at best untested (at worst, weak) in the middle, the thought of attacking Per Mertesacker and Arne Friedrich in the air is not the worst approach.
As with everything England right now, the question is less of tactic, more of execution. Playing through Rooney was not a bad idea, but it was poorly executed. Playing through the wing is not a bad idea, but against Germany, it’s going to have to be executed better, because although Germany maybe be weak in the middle, it’s a relative weakness.
Mertesacker is criticzed for failing to meet standards, but those are standards of the German national team. Unless England can provide something that defies that standard, Mertesacker should prove sufficient.
How The Match Turns: It Gareth Barry is not deployed higher on the pitch so that he can challenge Özil as he’s receiving the ball, it will be too easy for Germany to get into attack. If, however, Barry can congest the midfield and stop Germany from transitioning out of their end, he could create the type of turnovers England will quickly turn into opportunities for Rooney and Dafoe to run at isolated defenders.
World Cup 2010, England Vs. Germany: Germany's 4-1 Win Leaves No Doubt
At halftime it looked as if a goal by Frank Lampard that was not allowed could define the match, but a second half brace from Thomas Müller eliminated any doubt as to which team deserved to go on. Germany is in to the quarterfinals after a 4-1 win over England, England's worst World Cup loss of all time.
First half goals by Miroslav Klöse and Lukas Podolski had Germany up two after 32 minutes; however, a Matthew Upson header that beat Manuel Neuer, who had misjudged Steven Gerrard's cross, pulled England within one.
One minute later, a Frank Lampard goal that hit off the crossbar and bounced behind the goal line was never allowed, keeping the match 2-1 at the halftime whistle, blown seven minutes later.
A strong start to the second half from England gave reason to think Lampard's no-goal could prove important, but two counterattacks in the middle of the half gave Thomas Müller his second and third goals of the tournament (and his international career).
The first came in the 67th minute, when a counterattack after a Frank Lampard direct kick culminated with Bastian Schweinsteiger's pass to the right of attack, Thomas Müller finishing from 15 yards out off David James's elbow, inside the near post to make it 3-1.
Four minutes later, a counter started by Sami Khedira saw Mesut Ozil set-up an easy finish for Müller, capping the scoring at 4-1.
England is eliminated at the Round of 16, their earliest elimination since 1998, while Germany moves on the to quarterfinals for the 15th straight tournament, to play the winner of Argentina-Mexico next Saturday.
Jun 27 12:22p by Richard Farley - 1 comment