2014 World Cup final: Argentina vs Germany preview

adamhigginsuk
Jul 13, 2014
7 min read

Germany can end Argentina's FIFA World Cup campaign for a third time in a row when they meet in Sunday's eagerly-anticipated final at the iconic Maracana.

Argentina may have beaten them 3-2 in a classic 1986 final in Mexico but since then Germany have got the better of the South American side.

They initially exacted revenge in the 1990 World Cup final, defeating a nine-man Argentina 1-0, and have gone on to add victories against them in the quarter-finals of both the 2006 and 2010 showpiece.

But while Germany were completely emphatic in their 4-0 win against Argentina in Cape Town four years ago, they could only end the tournament in third, just like they did in their own country in 2006.

And their 2002 final defeat to Brazil means Joachim Low's side will be desperate to end their record of near-misses when they contest the showpiece in Rio de Janeiro.

Three-time winners Germany will enter the showpiece full of confidence, though, after an outstanding 7-1 demolition of hosts Brazil in Tuesday's semi-final.

This World Cup is widely regarded as one of the best ever and its undoubted highlight - at least for now - is Germany's destructive masterclass in Belo Horizonte - that saw them score five goals in the first 30 minutes.

No side has scored more than Germany's 17 goals at the tournament and forwards Thomas Muller and Miroslav Klose have starred once again on the biggest stage.

Klose became the greatest all-time scorer at the World Cup with a first-half effort against Brazil while Muller - winner of the Golden Boot in 2010 - is just one goal behind Colombia's James Rodriguez in the race for this year's prize.

24-year-old Muller already has 10 World Cup goals to his name, just six behind Klose, and it would surprise no-one if he was to add to his account against Argentina, a team he says will be targeted down the flanks and at set-pieces.

"I expect Germany to be very busy with build-up play. The midfield will have to distribute balls quickly into the forwards with fast, short passes," Muller said on Friday.

"We need to spring a surprise on Argentina and use our wingers. If that doesn't work, we'll score from a free-kick or a corner. We seem to be the kings of those at the moment."

While the significance of the occasion means no side will lack motivation, Argentina would dearly love to win their third World Cup in the spiritual home of Brazilian football.

Their sheer presence in the final means Germany are likely to receive partisan support but that is unlikely to faze four-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi.

Messi's impact at the World Cup had been questioned prior to this year's tournament but he has silenced his critics with a series of excellent performances, particularly in the group stages, where all four of his goals came.

And even though his individual performances have slightly dipped, perhaps understandable given the close attention he has received, the 27-year-old has still been a regular threat, and could cement his position as the greatest player of the modern era if he can fire Argentina to glory.

Another key figure will be Italian referee Nicola Rizzoli, who follows in the footsteps of Howard Webb and will hope the final is less fiery than the match in South Africa between Spain and the Netherlands.

It would be a fitting end if Sunday’s game delivers a classic final, but regardless of the outcome Brazil 2014 will live long in the memory.

Team News:

Germany are expected to name an unchanged side from their 7-1 demolition of hosts Brazil with Miroslav Klose, the all-time leading World Cup scorer with 16 goals, leading the line.

Thomas Mueller - chasing a second successive Golden Boot - will provide support in behind along with Arsenal's Mesut Ozil and Bayern Munich playmaker Toni Kroos.

Borussia Dortmund defender Mats Hummels, who was substituted at half-time against La Selecao as a precaution due to tendonitis, is expected to recover in time.

Argentina are sweating on the fitness of Angel Di Maria, who has only just returned to light training after a thigh injury but could still start.

Manchester City's Sergio Aguero has recovered from a similar problem and could come into the starting line-up at the expense of Ezequiel Lavezzi or Gonzalo Higuain.

Left-back Marcos Rojo did not take part in full training on Friday as a result of a sore ankle although the problem is not considered to be serious.

Possible Line-Ups:

Germany (4-2-3-1): Manuel Neuer, Phillip Lahm (C), Mats Hummels, Jerome Boateng, Benedict Howedes, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Sami Khedira, Thomas Mueller, Toni Kroos, Mesut Ozil, Miroslav Klose.

Argentina (4-3-3): Sergio Romero, Pablo Zabaleta, Martin Demichelis, Ezequiel Garay, Marcos Rojo, Luca Biglia, Enzo Perez, Gonzalo Higuain, Lionel Messi, Ezequiel Lavezzi.

Germany vs Argentina - goalkeeping comparison World Cup final 2014.png

Betting odds:

(According to Ladbrokes on 13 July 2014)

Germany win: 4/1

Argentina win: 11/2

Draw after 90 minutes: 11/5

Adam's Prediction:

Argentina 0-4 Germany 2010 World Cup - Messi and Schweinsteiger.jpg

The 2014 World Cup Final is upon us, and two of the top four pre-tournament favourites will face off at the Maracana. Germany and Argentina have both enjoyed fine runs to the final and have been the two best teams overall. Germany’s wobble in the group stages was swiftly overcome, and a 7-1 thrashing of Brazil in the semi-final will have quelled any nerves they might have had ahead of the final. They will be extremely high on confidence and, though their possession-based game has had its critics, they will look to control the game from the off. Argentina had a far less convincing last-eight tie, in which they stumbled and spluttered to a nerve-wracking penalty shootout victory over the Dutch. Without Angel Di Maria, they struggled for fluency and had one less creative player to take some of the focus off Lionel Messi. Even if he isn't at full fitness, the Real Madrid midfielder is very likely to start and that will give Germany something else to think about. While Argentina have plenty of players capable of producing a moment of magic - Messi, Di Maria, Gonzalo Higuain have all done so at this tournament - Germany are better as a collective unit and will deservedly be pre-game favourites to lift the trophy. The likes of Toni Kroos, Sami Khedira, Mesut Ozil and Thomas Muller will provide a cutting edge and the passing rhythm in midfield, and although this Argentina side have had a good defensive record for much of this tournament, they have been undone on occasion and a Germany side who have just put seven past the hosts will expect to find a way through. Argentina do, though, have the motivation of trying to win the World Cup in the home of their fiercest rivals and that could certainly spur them on. It is likely to be a cagier affair than Germany's semi-final, but they have a fantastic chance to win here and should become the first ever European side to become world champions on South American soil.

Score: Germany 2-1 Argentina

GERMANY:

Goals scored: 17

Goals conceded: 4

Number of players used: 18

Number of different scorers: 8 (Thomas Mueller, Mats Hummels, Mario Gotze, Miroslav Klose, Andre Schurrle, Mesut Ozil, Sami Khedira, Toni Kroos)

Current Fifa World Ranking: 2nd

All-time World Cup record: Games 105, Won 65, Drawn 20, Lost 20, Win percentage 62%

Route to the final:

Group Stages Germany (Mueller 3, Hummels) 4-0 Portugal Salvador

Group Stages Germany (Gotze, Klose) 2-2 Ghana Fortaleza

Group Stages USA 0-1 Germany (Mueller) Recife Round of 16 Germany (Schurrle, Ozil) 2-1 Algeria AET Porto Alegre

Quarter-Finals France 0-1 Germany (Hummels) Rio de Janeiro

Semi-Finals Brazil 1-7 Germany (Mueller, Klose, Kroos, Khedira, Schurrle 2) Belo Horizonte

ARGENTINA:

Goals scored: 8

Goals conceded: 3

Number of players used: 20

Number of different scorers: 4 (Lionel Messi, Marcos Rojo, Angel Di Maria, Gonzalo Higuain)

Current Fifa World Ranking: 5th

All-time World Cup record: Games 76, Won 42, Drawn 14, Lost 20, Win percentage 55%

Route to the final:

Group Stages Argentina (Kolasinac og, Messi) 2-1 Bosnia Rio de Janeiro

Group Stages Argentina (Messi) 1-0 Iran Belo Horizonte

Group Stages Nigeria 2-3 Argentina (Messi 2, Rojo) Porto Alegre Round of 16 Argentina (Di Maria) 1-0 Switzerland AET Sao Paulo

Quarter-Finals Argentina (Higuain) 1-0 Belgium Brasilia

Semi-Finals Argentina 0-0 Holland (AET) * Sao Paulo * (Argentina win 4-2 on penalties)

KEY MATCH FACTS:

Germany have now reached a World Cup final in each of the last seven decades (1954, 1966, 1974, 1982, 1986, 1990, 2002 and 2014), but have won just one of their last four.

Argentina have not trailed in any of their six World Cup 2014 matches so far while Germany have been behind for just eight minutes (in their 2-2 draw with Ghana during the group stages).

This is the 10th time that teams from Europe and South America have faced each other in the World Cup final. Seven of the previous nine have been won by the team from South America.

Argentina's Lionel Messi has scored five World Cup goals to date but none of them have come in the knockout stages.

Germany have won three and lost just one of the previous six World Cup encounters with Argentina (drawing two). The Germans also won their penalty shoot-out against Argentina in the 2006 quarter-finals.

Miroslav Klose is the only player in both squads who has already played in a World Cup final (in Germany's 2-0 defeat to Brazil in 2002).

The last time Germany scored in a World Cup match and lost was their 2-1 defeat to Bulgaria in the 1994 quarter-finals.

Argentina have kept four clean sheets so far in this World Cup (more than any other nation) and have yet to concede in the knockout stages.

REFWATCH

Nicola Rizzoli (Italy)

The 42-year-old has taken charge of Argentina twice so far in the tournament, handling their group stage win over Nigeria and quarter-final victory over Belgium.

The Bologna architect was in the middle for the 2013 Champions League final between German rivals Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund at Wembley and the 2010 Europa League final as Atletico Madrid beat Fulham in Hamburg.

He becomes the third Italian official to take charge of a World Cup final, following in the footsteps of Sergio Gonella in 1978 and Pierluigi Collina in 2002.