Brazil 2014 Qualification Round (Group C)
Germany have been drawn in a six-team group for the qualification stage of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, and have been pitted against some very familiar opponents. Having encountered them both in qualifying for the 2012 European Championship finals the Mannschaft will be pitted against neighbours Austria and Kazakhstan, while the rest of the group will consist of Sweden, the Republic of Ireland and the Faroe Islands.
While Germany have met the Swedes in recent competition (2006 World Cup, Euro 1992) the last time the two sides met in pre-tournament competition was in qualifying for the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. Both the Faroes and the Republic of Ireland have been more recent opponents, being drawn against the Mannschaft in the qualifying campaigns for Euro 2004 and Euro 2008 respectively.
v Faroe Islands, AWD-Arena, Hannover, 07.09.2012
3-0 (1-0)
Götze 28., Özil 54., 71. / –
Team: Neuer – Lahm (c), Hummels, Mertesacker, Badstuber – Khedira – Müller (68. Schürrle), Özil, Götze (87. Draxler), Reus – Klose (75. Podolski)
Goal info:
1-0 Mats Hummels picks out Mario Götze, who swivels beautifully between two defenders before dribbling into the box and sliding the ball with his right foot low into the left of the Faroese net and past ‘keeper Gunnar Nielsen from around fifteen yards.
2-0 Germany break swiftly as Sami Khedira comes away with the ball and finds Mesut Özil. The number eight charges forward into the opposition half and finds Thomas Müller on the right, and the Bayern man works his way past his marker and sends the ball back into the box. Having continued his run, Özil strokes the ball into the net with his left foot from around eight yards.
3-0 Marco Reus pounces on a mistake just inside the opposition half, and weaves forward before finding Özil, who almost strolls between two defenders before bundling the ball past Nielsen.
v Austria, Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Wien, 11.09.2012
2-1 (1-0)
Reus 44., Özil pen 52. / Januzović 57.
Team: Neuer – Lahm (c), Hummels, Badstuber, Schmelzer – Khedira, Kroos – Müller, Özil, Reus (46. Götze) – Klose (75. Podolski)
Goal info:
1-0 Austria are caught flat-footed by a neat German move, as Marco Reus is put through on the left by Mesut Özil. The young winger weaves inside, beats defender Emanuel Pogatetz and unleashes a delicate shot with his right foot. ‘Keeper Robert Almer gets a hand on the ball but is unable to prevent it from skidding inside his right post.
2-0 Thomas Müller is bundled over just inside the Austrian penalty area, and the penalty is awarded. Özil steps up, and smartly sends the kick to low Almer’s right with a sweet left-footed strike. The ‘keeper dives the right way, but the kick is just too good for him.
2-1 Austrian winger Marko Arnautović bustles past Mario Götze and the static Marcel Schmelzer, and makes his way to the byline before expertly cutting the ball back into the danger zone. There to meet it is the sliding Zlatko Junuzović, who bundles it in past Neuer.
v Republic of Ireland, Aviva Stadium, Dublin, 12.10.2012
6-1 (2-0)
Reus 32., 40., Özil pen 55., Klose 58., Kroos 61., 83. / Keogh 90.+2.
Team: Neuer – Boateng, Mertesacker, Badstuber, Schmelzer – Khedira (46. Kroos), Schweinsteiger (c) – Müller, Özil, Reus (66. Podolski) – Klose (72. Schürrle)
Goal info:
1-0 After some good close possession play on the left, Bastian Schweinsteiger flicks the ball into the box where it is picked up by Marcel Schmelzer, who chests the ball down nicely before mis-kicking. Defender Aiden McGeady fails to clear, and Marco Reus breezes in to skip past his marker and lift the ball neatly over ‘keeper Keiren Westwood and in off the underside of the crossbar with his right foot.
2-0 Schmelzer wins a defensive challenge and Germany break swiftly through Mesut Özil, who spreads the ball wide to Jérôme Boateng on the right who sends it across the width of the pitch to find Reus in space. The Dortmund man doesn’t need a second invitation as he moves the ball forward before crashing a lovely left-footed shot past Westwood.
3-0 Germany break, and as Miroslav Klose looks to collect Thomas Müller’s pass he is hacked down by Darren O’Dea – and the referee points to the penalty spot. Özil steps up to coolly send his kick into the right side of the net with his left foot. No run up, a slight pause, and a clinical finish.
4-0 Another swift German break, a pin-point through-ball from Schweinsteiger to Klose, who rounds Westwood before finding the target from the tightest of tight angles to draw ever closer to Gerd Müller’s long-standing goalscoring record.
5-0 More trickery from Özil, the Irish are once again at sixes and sevens, and the ball falls to substitute Toni Kroos who cracks a stunning low left-footed volley past Westwood from just outside the penalty area.
6-0 After a string of passes Kroos finds space some twenty yards out from the Irish goal, and thunders a right-footed shot that flies past the helpless Westwood before slamming into the back of the Irish net.
6-1 After forcing Manuel Neuer into a fine save in injury time, Millwall’s Andy Keogh rises up unmarked six yards out at the far post to nod in Robby Brady’s right-wing corner. It is the final touch of the match.
v Sweden, Olympiastadion, Berlin, 16.10.2012
4-4 (3-0)
Klose 8., 15., Mertesacker 39., Özil 55. / Ibrahimović 62., Lustig 64., Elmander 76., Elm 90.+3.
Team: Neuer – Boateng, Mertesacker, Badstuber, Lahm (c) – Kroos, Schweinsteiger – Müller (67. Götze), Özil, Reus (88. Podolski) – Klose
Goal info:
1-0 Jérôme Boateng seizes possession out on the left flank, and Philipp Lahm picks up the ball and plays a neat one-two with Toni Kroos before finding the fast-advancing Marco Reus. The Borussia Dortmund man glides to the byline, and plays the perfect cutback for Miroslav Klose, who lashes the ball into the left with his left foot from ten yards past Andreas Isaksson.
2-0 After one intricate German move breaks down, Mesut Özil plays the ball back to Reus, who once again charges to the byline following two perfect interchanges with Kroos and Thomas Müller. The winger once again cuts the ball back into the box, where Klose is on hand to stab it home from close range at the second attempt.
3-0 Lahm finds Reus in space out on the left-hand touchline, and the ball is quickly swept into the Swedish box. It takes an awkward bounce and appears to come off Klose’s arm, but ends up with to Müller is in space out on the right on the edge of the six-yard box. Unselfishly Müller heads the ball back into the danger zone, and fullback Per Mertesacker arrives unmarked to volley the ball home from seven yards with his right foot.
4-0 Müller picks the ball up out on the right just inside the Swedish half, and sprints forward and into the box before floating a cross out to the left. Özil is there to collect, and the midfield playmaker chests the ball down and steadies himself before sweeping a low left-footed shot across the helpless Isaksson and into the bottom right-hand corner of the net.
4-1 Müller appears to be fouled by Kim Kallström as he advances towards the halfway line, but the referee waves play on. Kallström picks up the ball and moves away from the stricken Müller before sending a high and looping ball into the German box. Holger Badstuber fails to keep a close eye on Zlatan Ibrahimović, who appears to amble in before sending a firm header past Manuel Neuer.
4-2 Kallström sends in another high ball, catching out Badstuber who sees right-back Mikael Lustig sneak him behind him. Lustig controls the ball brilliantly before stabbing a right-footed shot from the edge of the six-yard box that appears to squirm straight through Neuer and into the back of the net at the near post.
4-3 Swedish left-back Behrang Safari breaks and sends a long ball down the left to alexander Kačaniklić, who beats Mertesacker before cutting the ball sharply back into the box. There to meet it is Johan Elmander, who gets ahead of the almost static Badstuber to find the low right-hand corner of the net with a superbly-timed left-footed finish.
4-4 Kallström sends yet another high ball into the box, and Ibrahimović appears to impede Mertesacker with his arm as the German fullback tries to clear. The loose ball falls to Rasmus Elm, who from ten yards sweeps the ball past Neuer and into the bottom left-hand side of the German goal on the half-volley.
v Kazakhstan, Astana-Arena, Astana, 22.03.2013
3-0 (2-0)
Müller 20., 74., Götze 22. / –
Team: Neuer – Lahm (c), Mertesacker, Höwedes, Schmelzer – Khedira (82. Gündoğan), Schweinsteiger – Müller (82. Schürrle), Özil, Draxler (19. Podolski) – Götze
Goal info:
1-0 Benedikt Höwedes picks up the ball just inside the Kazakhstan half and threads it forward to Mesut Özil, who rolls it horizontally to Bastian Schweinsteiger who is lurking just outside the D. The Bayern man flicks the ball over both his head and his marker before sweeping it on the volley into the bottom left-hand corner of the net past ‘keeper Andrei Sidelnikov with his right foot. It should be Schweinsteiger’s goal, though it is later credited to Müller having brushed his chest on the way in.
2-0 Sami Khedira and Müller combine as Germany move down the right flank, and as Müller looks to evade a prostrate defender to collect the ball Sidelnikov comes charging off his line. It’s a crazy moment for the Kazakhstan ‘keeper, as the ball falls nice to Götze who strokes an easy right-footed effort into the back of the net.
3-0 The energetic Müller cuts inside from the right touchline, and when two opposition defenders fail to clear the loose ball is picked up by Götze. A short pass out to Özil, who then executes the perfect reverse flick back inside to Müller, whose right boot is unerring as he slots the ball past Sidelnikov and into the bottom right-hand corner of the goal.
v Kazakhstan, Grundig-Stadion, Nürnberg, 26.03.2013
4-1 (3-0)
Reus 23., 90., Götze 27., Gündoğan 31. / Schmidtgal 46.
Team: Neuer – Lahm (c), Mertesacker, Boateng, Schmelzer – Khedira, Gündoğan – Müller, Özil, Reus (90. Jansen) – Götze
Goal info:
1-0 Mesut Özil picks the ball up out in the left just inside the opposition half, and exchanges a series of crisp passes with Marco Reus who cuts inside. Reus jinks his way to the edge of the penalty area before lashing a low right-footed shot from twenty yards past Kazakh ‘keeper Andrei Sidelnikov and into the bottom left hand corner of the net.
2-0 Skipper Philipp Lahm assumes possession out on the right just midway inside the opposition half, and makes a magical run down the right and into the box. After charging past three men and skipping the challenge of a fourth, he slips a neat ball inside for Mario Götze who slides in to toe poke past the Sidelnikov from close range.
3-0 It’s pass after pass after pass from the Germans, and it after some fifty-odd exchanges covering a solid two and a quarter minutes of unbroken possession they finally go in for the kill. Jérôme Boateng plays a smart diagonal ball to Özil out on the right, and the playmaker cuts inside before dinking the ball into the box for İlkay Gündoğan to net his first international goal.
3-1 Just seconds into the second half, German ‘keeper Manuel Neuer fails to deal with a poor back pass from centre-back Per Mertesacker, and loses possession. As Neuer desperately tries to clear the loose ball, Heinrich Schmidtgal grabs the opportunity to net his side’s first goal in any full international against the Mannschaft.
4-1 Having just survived a scare at the other end, Germany break quickly up the field. Gündoğan makes a purposeful run down the left before threading a neat ball through for Reus, who coolly sweeps a right-footed into the net from just inside the penalty area.
v Austria, Allianz-Arena, München, 06.09.2013
0-0
- / -
Team: -
Goal info: -
v Faroe Islands, Tórsvøllur, Tórshavn, 10.09.2013
0-0
- / -
Team: -
Goal info: -
v Republic of Ireland, RheinEnergieStadion, Köln, 11.10.2013
0-0
- / -
Team: -
Goal info: -
v Sweden, TBA (Away), 15.10.2013
0-0
- / -
Team: -
Goal info: -
Current Group Standings
Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Germany | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 22 | 7 | +15 | 16 |
 | Austria | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 13 | 4 | +9 | 8 |
 | Sweden | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 5 | +3 | 8 |
 | Republic of Ireland | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 10 | -1 | 8 |
 | Kazakhstan | 6 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 15 | -13 | 1 |
 | Faroe Islands | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 15 | -13 | 0 |
Other results: Kazakhstan 1-2 Republic of Ireland, Sweden 2-0 Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan 0-0 Austria, Faroe Islands 1-2 Sweden, Faroe Islands 1-4 Republic of Ireland, Austria 4-0 Kazakhstan, Austria 6-0 Faroe Islands, Sweden 0-0 Republic of Ireland, Republic of Ireland 2-2 Austria.
Goals Summary: Özil, Reus (5), Götze, Klose (3), Kroos, Müller (2), Gündoğan, Mertesacker. Total 22.
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