Sports Update Monday: Germany Wins 2014 World Cup
If they were going to make history by winning the World Cup — and Germany’s soccer team certainly did that on Sunday afternoon in Rio de Janeiro — they did it the way that it should be done. They beat all comers and they smothered the world’s two best players along the way. It took two dozen years for the Mannschaft to win its fourth golden keepsake and its first as a unified country but there was, finally, no doubt about who was the Weltmeister.
No European country had won the Cup in the seven previous times when the tournament was held in the Americas and the Germans took the most demanding route to their triumph. They topped the Group of Death, drilling Portugal, 4-0, in their opener. They shut out the French, who’d scored 10 goals in four outings. They dealt the Brazilians the worst defeat imaginable. And they blanked the Argentines in what amounted to a home match for the Albiceleste.
“It’s unbelievable what we have achieved,” declared captain Philipp Lahm after Germany had KO’d Argentina, 1-0, on substitute Mario Goetze’s clinical finish in the 113th minute of the final inside Maracana Stadium.
Not that it couldn’t have gone a different way. If Gonzalo Higuain hadn’t botched his 21st-minute breakaway, if Lionel Messi hadn’t misfired just after intermission, or had been able to produce the equalizer with his last-minute free kick, Argentina might well have found a way to win.
The Germans prevailed because they were the best from end to end and because they had the best bench. The winning goal was crafted by two reserves — Andre Schurrle, who came on after 31 minutes when last-minute starter Christoph Kramer was taken off after going woozy from a knock to the head, and Goetze, who replaced Miroslav Klose two minutes before the end of regulation. “You can make it happen,” Klose assured Goetze.
The Germans have made a science of shutting down superstars. They did it to Maradona in the 1990 final. They did it to Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo and they did it to Messi. Once attacking midfielder Angel di Maria was sidelined with a thigh injury Argentina’s scoring dried up.