DEFAULT GERMAN VICTORY IN A CORPORATE BEHEMOTH OF A WORLD CUP

D. Ray Morton, 14th July 2014.

That cherubic scoundrel Mario Götze kisses the World Cup shortly after scoring the goal that won it for Germany

A month ago when World Cup 2014 started, football fans were greeted with the possibility of a truly great showcase of the game and we very nearly got one. Somewhere along the line it became altogether very serious. Germany were able squeeze past a stubborn Argentinian side thanks to a late goal in extra time from substitute Mario Götze to win the whole damn thing. Perhaps a fitting conclusion amidst the corporate flatulence that had filled this newfangled Maracanã stadium. Götze, afterall, is the guy who jilted the romantics of Borussia Dortmund to seek fame and fortune at the global powerhouse that are rivals Bayern Munich. Such dignitaries as German prime minister Angela Merkel and...the guy from "That '70s Show", Ashton Kutcher, were in attendance for that special moment.

Irreverence had probably seeped into the mind of any avid fan of the sport as this final developed. The game was flat, rather boring for the most part. Occasionally Argentina would carve out an opportunity but could not add a finishing touch. Gonzalo Higuaín was guilty of a bad one-on-one miss in the first half. Indeed, Higuaín (or Ó hUiginn, poet of Connacht) was at the heart of another controversial incident that probably went over the heads of many spectators as the game veered towards inevitable full-time stalemate and subsequent extra time. Chasing a loose ball in the second half, the Napoli striker was baring down on goal until German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer leapt out of the air. His knee rising like that of a Muay Thai fighter, Neuer nearly took Higuaín's head off as he snatched the ball from his opponent's path. The incident was nearly very ugly, reminiscent of Harald Schumacher's assault of Patrick Battiston in 1982. Somehow, Italian referee Nicola Rizzoli awarded the decision against the Argentine. That moment was decisive in the course of the game as the correct call would have resulted in a penalty for Argentina and a red card for Neuer.

Manuel Neuer's reckless knee smash of Gonzalo Higuaín, remarkably, went completely unpunished
 

With the game spiralling towards penalties, Germany's extra rest day and the fresh legs of Götze proved to be decisive. Another substitute, André Schürrle, was able to skip past the exhausted duo of Javier Mascherano and Pablo Zabaleta down the left flank where he crossed in. Götze controlled well with his chest and knocked it past the on-rushing Sergio Romero who had left most of his goal open. Beer steins were lifted all over Germany as the country, in its unified form, won its first World Cup.

Argentina were crushed and could not even threaten in the few minutes thereafter. It must have been an especially frustrating night for Lionel Messi. He did not have his best game and missed a pretty decent chance in the second half of normal time. To makes matters worse, he was awarded the Golden Ball award for best player at the World Cup though he himself will feel embarrassed to receive such a prize. Realistically, it has not been Messi's World Cup since the group stage. Someone like Colombia's James Rodríguez, who performed brilliantly in each of his matches, would have been far more worthy. Even Diego Maradona felt Messi was unworthy sensing that the award had a corporate angle behind it.

Anyway, it is done. Germany have their prize and the rest of the world just want to move on and forget about this. In Europe, the Germans do not have many fans outside of their own country. Only an English victory would have been more offensive. However inclined, one must admit that Germany are a good team in an international football scene without many others. They can build on this and stroll into Euro 2016 as favourites, a pedestal they have not enjoyed since the 1990s.

GERMANY IN 7TH HEAVEN WITH BRAZIL LEFT HUMILIATED

D. Ray Morton, 9th July 2014.

David Luiz turns on the waterworks after the worst game of his life. Paris St-Germain must be very concerned about having just spent €63m for his services

When making their pre-match predictions for the Brazil vs. Germany semi-final yesterday evening, people talked of Brazil's lack of creativity due to the missing Neymar. The concensus was that Germany would sniff out a narrow victory in a cagey match. The absence of centre-back and captain, Thiago Silva, was something of an afterthought. With Bayern Munich's Dante expected to replace him, it would be fine, they thought, and the main problem would be finding that spark in attack. Luiz Felipe Scolari must have been of the same school of thought and slapped the captain's armband on David Luiz allowing him to have command at the back. What a mistake that turned out to be.

Germany absolutely annihilated the Brazilians in Belo Horizonte, a place-name that will now seem like Hiroshima to native Brazilians. Thomas Müller opened the scoring with easiest of tap-ins from a corner with marking which would have driven a Sunday league manager insane. Bad start.

What happened between the 23rd and 29th minutes of that first half was scarcely believable. Even writing about it now, after the dust has settled, it still seems surreal. The Germans absolutely steamrollered a Brazilian side that had completely lost their discipline. They collapsed quicker than the Twin Towers. Miroslav Klose scored in the 23rd minute, his 16th all-time World Cup goal which saw him beat Ronaldo's record. Now Brazil more than just wilted. They lost the plot entirely. The cheese had slipped off the cracker. Toni Kroos netted two more goals before writers doing their play-by-play reports could catch their breath. Sami Khedira scored another. It was 5-0 and they had not played even half an hour.

Jaws dropped in the stands and the TV cameras flashed towards bawling Brazilian fans suffering a humiliation so great that it made their 1950 World Cup collapse to Uruguay seem like nothing. This was utter, complete devastation. The second half played out like something of a practice match. Manuel Neuer even had to make some decent saves but Brazil were playing like lost souls scattered around the Estádio Mineirão weighted by a sense of doom. As André Schürrle entered the fray, you could tell he was the type of player who would add more damage. Duly he did, scoring in the 69th and 79th minutes, the second goal quite stunning, Brazil left in tatters. Oscar's last minute rebuttal was like giving anaesthetic to someone who had just been put through a meat grinder.

This vile sea creature may be taking his vengeance on mankind after most of the world smirked gleefully at Brazil's demise

How did it all go so wrong? It cannot be blamed on David Luiz alone although he had a true nightmare, the worst game he will ever likely play. Collectively, as soon as the first goal went in, the heads dropped. This has been a strange World Cup for Brazil. Playing in front of their home crowd, the expectation has been massive. Players have routinely shed tears during the playing of the national anthem. Their psychological state bordered on somewhere between fanaticism and obsession. It was too volatile a cocktail without the calming presence of Thiago Silva around to essentially babysit a defence that did not have the bottle for a match of this magnitude.

It is something of a shame that Germany will not even be credited that highly for this unique semi-final triumph. Never has a team enjoyed such a resounding victory at this stage of the World Cup. Though Joachim Löw's side will go up in peoples' estimation, I still do not see them as a team that will tear apart either Argentina or the Netherlands in the final. Indeed, that second semi-final will probably be a world away from what we witnessed last night though making predictions at this stage of an insane World Cup is crazy business.

BRAZIL HAVE A DATE WITH GERMANY BUT AT WHAT COST?

D. Ray Morton, 5th July 2014.

Neymar in agony after being smashed in the lower back by Colombia's Zúñiga

World Cup hosts Brazil defeated Colombia 2-1 in their quarter-final bout last night thanks to a goal each from their centre-backs, Thiago Silva and David Luiz. Luiz's goal was a thing of a beauty, a rocket free-kick from distance but their victory will be overshadowed by the loss of the aforementioned Silva, the captain booked picking up a suspension, and notably Neymar, Brazil's superstar out through injury. They managed to dispatch the Colombians, who many people had fancied, but at quite the cost.

Neymar's injury was a cruel one. Opposition wing-back Juan Camilo Zúñiga smashed the fleet-footed Brazilian into the lower back with a driving knee. Zúñiga may not have been attempting to injure Neymar but he certainly meant to hurt him and his message was duly delivered. The diagnosis is a damaged vertebra with a minimum of a six-week lay-off expected.

They take on the Germans in the semi-final with essentially their two best players missing. Thiago Silva is a vital part of their defence and keeps the often positionally naïve David Luiz in check. All their creativity comes through Neymar and his replacement, whether it be Willian or Bernard, will feel the pressure of having to fill his boots. All of a sudden, Brazil do not seem as threatening any more and Germany can only be delighted at the convenience of all this.

David Luiz, a man obsessed?

RTÉ's Eamon Dunphy described David Luiz's body language as a man "obsessed" after scoring his goal but in all fairness, Luiz deserves praise for what was a genuinely stunning goal, maybe the most spectacular free-kick in World Cup history. Brazil beat a very physical Colombian side and though many have complained about their style of play, it is time to give them some bit of respect now. Colombia had actually been the only consistently impressive team in this tournament, Brazil beat them so what more do people want? It's not as if any of the other remaining teams in the competition have enthralled us. The Dutch had their big win against Spain but have played negatively since. Argentina are a one man team and Belgium have failed to excite despite defending very well.

Next come Germany who put away France in probably the dullest game of the knockout stages so far. Mats Hummels scored the only goal of the game early on and the Germans simply sucked the life out of Didier Deschamps' side to secure a boring-but-effective 1-0 win. Philipp Lahm looked good back in his right full-back position but there is still something of a striker dilemma with Miroslav Klose failing to impress. Perhaps André Schürrle will win a starting spot for the semi-final allowing Thomas Müller to play up front.

Tonight's matches are Argentina vs. Belgium (kick-off at 5pm GMT) and the Netherlands vs. Costa Rica (kick-off 9pm GMT) with the Argentines and Dutch expected to go through. Belgium will provide Messi and co. with a tough challenge, however, though it is hard to see the game underdogs of Costa Rica shocking Louis van Gaal and his troops.