Costa Rica vs Germany: Win at all costs for both sides in groundbreaking match
Costa Rica and Germany will face off on matchday three, with nothing short of a win going to be enough to secure a spot in the round of 16. At the moment, Los Ticos sit in third spot, with three points, while die Mannschaft have an uphill battle as they are bottom of their quartet with just one.
Four years ago, Germany was the then-reigning champions of the world, but suffered a humiliating tournament as they crashed out in the group stage. As such, the four-time World Cup winners will be hoping not to make that a repeat, but they have really left themselves with a lot to do after a shock loss to Japan on matchday one. While Hansi Flick’s men rebounded by drawing Spain, the fact remains that they still will need to win this game, and hope that Spain can do them a major favor against Japan.
Germany were looking at an early exit against Spain following Alvaro Morata’s goal, only for Werder Bremen striker Niclas Fullkrug to come off the bench and salvage not just a point, but potentially their journey in this competition. However, their fate isn’t entirely in their own hands. If they do beat Costa Rica, and Spain defeat Japan, they will head into the round of 16 as group runners up. If Japan manage to hold Spain to a draw, then Germany will need to beat Costa Rica by at least two goals to sneak into second. And if Japan manage to pull off another upset and beat Spain, then Germany will need to beat Costa Rica by at least five goals in order to pip Spain to second.
Which, of course, will be easier said than done. Although Costa Rica were absolutely horrible as they were beaten 7-0 by a rampaging Spain on matchday one, Los Ticos will be desperate to avoid another thrashing. And the fact remains that Germany just haven’t looked like the swashbuckling side of years ago that would absolutely blitz their opponents – such as their 7-1 mauling of Brazil in 2014 or their 8-0 crushing of Saudi Arabia bac kin 2002. They have won just two of their last 10 games across all comps, and were quite poor in their Nations League campaign earlier this year, so on paper, that doesn’t read for good reading for Flick’s squad.
Die Mannschaft are truly in danger of setting some rather unpleasant records. The first is something Flick will hope to avoid as a black mark on his CV. Having failed to beat Spain and Japan, the former Bayern Munich boss, who lead die Roten to six major titles during the 2019/2020 season, could become the first German manager to fail to win all three of his group stage games. Should that happen, Germany will be eliminated in the group stages in back to back tournaments for the first time in the nation’s history.
Meanwhile, Costa Rica rebounded after a crushing 7-0 defeat to Spain on matchday one to earn a crucial 1-0 victory over Japan. That has ensured that Los Ticos are still afloat, albeit they will need to beat Germany in order to leapfrog Japan into second spot. Interestingly, despite their heavy loss, even first place isn’t out of the reach for the Central American nation, provided that Japan beat Spain and they manage, somehow, to defeat Germany by an astronomical margin.
Costa Rica also will hope to get revenge on Germany for their loss back in 2006, which saw the Germans triumph 4-2 in what was then their first ever World Cup meeting. If Spain do beat Japan, Los Ticos will simply need a draw to progress, albeit they will be facing a German side desperate to turn their World Cup around in order to avoid what would be a humiliating and historic early exit.
This game will also be groundbreaking as 38-year-old Stephanie Frappart will be taking charge of the match, making her the first woman to act as the first official during a men’s World Cup game. Many eyes will be on the Frenchwoman, who certainly will be under pressure to get all her calls right in what will be a very tense atmosphere.
Will Germany be able to successfully revive their World Cup campaign and squeak into the round of 16 by the skin of their teeth? Or will Costa Rica, encouraged by their recent 1-0 win over Japan, be able to grab a knockout round spot and show they have truly bounced back after their 7-0 humiliation to Spain on matchday one?
