Germany Advances to Fourth Straight Semifinal
RIO DE JANEIRO - As appetizers go, it was more of a dessert: a World Cup quarterfinal at Estádio do Maracanã between two European powerhouses featuring 22 starting players who all play club soccer in England, Spain, France, Italy or Germany. For much of the world, it was a heavyweight fight contested in one of the sport's greatest venues.
Here, of course, it was an undercard, as Brazil will play Colombia later Friday afternoon in a game so big it prompted the Colombian government to declare a national holiday. Yet even without top billing, Germany will not mind. The Germans defeated France, 1-0, to advance to their fourth straight semifinal in front of an announced crowd of 74,240. Mats Hummels scored in the 13th minute, and the goal, his second of the tournament, held up to leave several frustrated French players in tears at the final whistle.
France, which was one of the hottest teams at the group stage, will head home this weekend while Germany, which won despite having seven players troubled by illness in the days leading to the game, will face either Brazil or Colombia on Tuesday in Belo Horizonte.
As with most European soccer rivalries, there was already some significant history between the teams before the game began. One of the World Cup's ugliest moments - or greatest travesties, depending on one's point of view - came in the 1982 semifinal between France and West Germany when French forward Patrick Battiston charged behind the West Germany defense in pursuit of a gorgeous through ball and, after taking a touch to the side, was leveled by goalkeeper Harald Schumacher.
The collision was gory. Schumacher leapt directly into Battiston, driving his hip into Battiston's face and leveling him with such force that Battiston lost three teeth and needed oxygen as he was taken off the field on a stretcher. To most observers, it was a clear penalty kick and red card but the referee, the Dutchman Charles Corver, did not punish Schumacher at all.
The West Germans went on to win the game on penalty kicks, with Schumacher standing as one of the heroes since he made two saves in the shootout. To be fair, Schumacher offered to pay for two of Battiston's teeth to be capped (a nice enough gesture), but there would be no karmic retribution; four years later, the teams met again in the World Cup, again in the semifinals, and Schumacher again denied Battiston, though this time it was only making a late save on the way to victory as opposed to committing bodily harm.
The West Germans finished as runners-up in both of those tournaments then won the title in 1990 in a run of dominance that highlighted the country's perpetual presence at the top level of the sport. Since 1954, the Germans (or West Germans) have at least reached the quarterfinals in every World Cup played.
In Brazil, they were picked as the most likely team to break the European hex that has seen no team from the continent ever win a World Cup in the Americas. Bolstered by a strong contingent of players from juggernauts Bayern Munich, Germany won its group - albeit with some inconsistent play - but was then deemed vulnerable after struggling in the Round of 16 against Algeria as the African underdogs took the Germans into extra time.
The French, were widely seen as enigmas after a disastrous 2010 World Cup in which they did not win a game and were embarrassed by a player revolt that sent the national federation into turmoil. France then nearly failed to qualify for this year's World Cup, slipping in only after overcoming a two-goal deficit in the two-game series with Ukraine for one of Europe's final spots.
Since that rally, however, France Coach Didier Deschamps said he saw a noticeable surge from his players, and Les Bleus showed that during the group stage. The French did not lose in the group stage, scoring eight goals in two victories and a draw before knocking off Nigeria, 2-0, in the Round of 16.
That seemed to give the French an edge coming into this quarterfinal, but their finishing in the attacking end of the field was lacking from the start. In the first half, France had seven shots and never really troubled the German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer while Germany took four shots and scored on Hummels's deft header off a precise free-kick cross from Toni Kroos flying past Hugo Lloris, the French captain, before he could react. Hummels missed the game against Algeria because he was sick and was one of the Germans who Coach Joachim Löw said was still bothered by flulike conditions entering the game, though it did not appear to be a significant factor.
France was a bit better in the second half but continued to struggle to finish its movements. André Schürrle had two chances late to put the game away for Germany but missed both, leaving Karim Benzema with one final opportunity to equalize for France in injury time.
Benzema, a Real Madrid attacker who scored four goals in the World Cup coming into the game, broke in from the left side but saw his shot palmed away by Neuer, the Bayern Munich backstop.
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