Germany beat Argentina to win 2014 World Cup

Jul 14, 2014

Mario Goetze comes off the bench to score the winning goal as Germany beat Argentina in the Brazil 2014 World Cup final.

Story of the match:

  • Germans come into the final as favorites against Argentina
  • Squandered chances, disallowed goal
  • Game goalless with no winner by the end of 90 minutes
  • Mario Goetze scores only goal in 113th minute to see off Argentina
  • Germany become first European side to win on South American soil
  • Manuel Neuer wins Golden Glove, Messi wins Golden Ball

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RIO DE JANEIRO - Mario Goetze scored a superb extra-time winner as Germany beat Argentina 1-0 to become the first European team to win a World Cup held in South America on Sunday.

Bayern Munich star Goetze struck in the 113th minute to finally break Argentina's resistance as Lionel Messi's dream of emulating Diego Maradona ended in defeat.

Germany has now won four World Cups, putting the European powerhouses just one behind Brazil's record tally of five.

"It's unbelievable what we have achieved. Whether we have the best individual player doesn't matter at all, you just need to have the best team," said delighted Germany captain Philipp Lahm.

"We improved throughout the tournament and didn't get down when things didn't always go our way, we just stuck to our path and at the end we're standing here as world champions. It's an unbelievable feeling.

"The team stayed calm and patient, we knew that we had something left at the end."

The decisive moment of a World Cup brimming with wonderful goals came with penalties looming in front of 74,738 fans at Rio de Janeiro's famous Maracana Stadium.

Andre Schuerrle burst clear down the left flank and crossed for Goetze.

The 22-year-old took the ball on his chest and then volleyed past Sergio Romero to spark delirium amongst the largely pro-German crowd.

Messi largely anonymous

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Despite failing to inspire his side to victory, Messi won was named the the World Cup player of 2014. PHOTO/AFP

Messi was largely anonymous for most of the evening and his miserable evening was summed up when a late free-kick to equalise sailed over the bar.

The victory was celebrated raucously by Brazilians in the crowd, who had dreaded the prospect of sworn South American rivals Argentina lifting the title in their backyard.

An absorbing first half saw Germany forced into a reshuffle moments before kick-off with inexperienced Christoph Kramer replacing Sami Khedira after the Real Madrid star injured a calf in the warm up.

With Bastian Schweinsteiger running midfield the Germans laid siege to Argentinian territory, passing smoothly and denying Messi a route into the game.

Yet for all Germany's early dominance they created little in the way of clear chances. And it was Argentina who were presented with a glorious chance to open the scoring.

Toni Kroos misdirected a header back to Manuel Neuer to send Gonzalo Higuain racing through on goal.

But with only Neuer to beat the Napoli striker dragged his shot wide to disbelief from fans and team-mates. Germany continued to probe for openings, and a Lahm pass almost put Thomas Mueller clear.

The pace of Argentina on the counter-attack continued to unsettle Germany however. Schweinsteiger picked up a yellow card for bringing down Ezequiel Lavezzi just after the half hour mark.

Moments later, Higuain had the ball in the net for Argentina only to see the goal disallowed for offside.

Personnel problems

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Injured Germany's midfielder Christoph Kramer was helped off the pitch. PHOTO/AFP

Germany's personnel problems deepened when Kramer himself went off, prompting the introduction of Schuerrle.

The Germans remained unfazed by the setback however, and quickly set about reimposing their control of the game.

Schuerrle drew a fine near-post save from Romero on 37 minutes with a rasping shot after Mueller's cutback.

But the latent threat of Messi meant Germany could never entirely relax.

Messi burst away down the right and raced into the box, toe-poked past Neuer only for Jerome Boateng to clear.

On the stroke of half-time Benedikt Hoewedes came within inches of scoring, crashing a header from a Kroos corner against the post.

The second half followed a similar pattern, Germany controlling possession but Argentina often threatening on the break.

Messi squandered another golden Argentinian chance shortly after the restart, latching onto a pass from Lucas Biglia but scuffing his shot wide of Neuer.

The hard-fought nature of the contest led to a flurry of cards from referee Nicola Rizzoli, who cautioned Javier Mascherano and Sergio Aguero in quick succession for fouls on Miroslav Klose and Schweinsteiger.

The remainder of the half saw neither side able to get on top.

Germany controlled possession without really testing Romero, while Argentina were unable to pass a German defence superbly marshalled by Mats Hummels and Boateng.

Schuerrle came closest to breaking the deadlock in the first period of extra-time, forcing Romero into a desperate block.

Penalties looked to be the likeliest outcome, but Goetze had other ideas.

AFP

(PHOTOs by AFP)

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Argentina's forward Lionel Messi, who inspired and captained his side all the way to the very end of this tournament, was a threat on the counter-attacks for the South American side, most notably in a first half highlighted by disallowed goals and wasted opportunities.

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Messi was a constant spot of bother for the German defense, as we see him here rounding custodian Neuer, clearly left for dead, during one of the tense moments of the first half.

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Argentina's coach Alejandro Sabella was never ready to take his seat especially after seeing his boys squander the best of chances in a do-or-die game inside a lively loud Maracana stadium.
 

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In the stands, from the look on this Germany fan's face, it was either Germany wins, or Argentina loses. No more options!

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But back on the pitch, Italian referee Nicola Rizzoli was as busy as the 22 players on the pitch, and he made his authority known, often demanding for calm and discipline in a tense final.

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Once, he found himself having to intervene in a melee involving Germany forward Thomas Mueller (R) and Argentina defender Martin Demichelis and fellow teammate defender Marcos Rojo as Mueller's teammate and captain Philipp Lahm walks to the scene

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For referee Rizzoli, when some of the players would get a bit messy with their feet, he would be forced to dig into his pocket, here dishing out a yellow card to Germany defender Benedikt Hoewedes

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OOPS! German Chancellor Angela Merkel (2R) and German Prime Minsiter Joachim Gauck burst into celebration, only to be forced back into their seats when the goal was disallowed. Of course, Brazilian President Dilma Roussef (C) had joined in on the celebration. Every Brazilian had, perhaps.

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Argentina's forward Gonzalo Higuain, who should have scored in the first half after escaping the attentions of the Germany defenders, gave way for forward Rodrigo Palacio to take his place on the pitch.

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The final was watched by a worldwide TV audience estimated at over one billion. Here German fans follow proceedings in a bar of Puerto de la Cruz, on the Spanish Canary island of Tenerife.

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Ouch! So so so so close!

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Such was how tight the game was, surprisingly to some people, that there was no winner yet by the end of 90 minutes. So matters had to go on, with the search for the ultimate victor plunged into half-an-hour of extra time.

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The German fans, and many followers of the game out there, came into this final with one thing dominantly on their mind: "A win for Germany." But the proceedings on the pitch were far from reflecting those expectations. Who thought the game would be forced into extra time, let alone goalless at that? Tight.

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But then, deep into extra time, Mario Goetze stepped into the spotlight when he scored the winner.

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So for the crying fan, two pictures above, it was just a matter of time before her team could on to live up to expectations and reign supreme over a resilient Argentina. Here, captain Philipp Lahm is presented with the World Cup trophy by Joseph Blatter FIFA President (R) and Brazil's President Dilma Roussef

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Party time in Germany, a country known for its love for Das Bier (beer). These German fans celebrating during a firework display after an outdoor screening near the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin surely will not see their beds tonight!

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Scenes of wild German celebrations after the final whistle.

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Scenes of joy as Germany defender Benedikt Hoewedes and his coach Joachim Loew celebrate

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Even amid his side's moment of celebration, Germany coach Joachim Loew took time off to console a heartbroken Messi

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The Argentina playmaker had set his sights on emulating his legendary fellow countryman and World Cup winner Diego Maradonna, who is reported to have vowed to run around naked in the streets if Argentina beat Germany on Sunday. So, while Maradonna's pants will now remain on following Germany's triumph, Messi will look to the future and see what is has in stock for him.

LIST OF PAST WORLD CUP WINNERS

 The 20 World Cup winners after Germany beat Argentina 1-0 in Sunday's final:

1930 - Uruguay

1934 - Italy

1938 - Italy

1950 - Uruguay

1954 - West Germany

1958 - Brazil

1962 - Brazil

1966 - England

1970 - Brazil

1974 - West Germany

1978 - Argentina

1982 - Italy

1986 - Argentina

1990 - West Germany

1994 - Brazil

1998 - France

2002 - Brazil

2006 - Italy

2010 - Spain

and then  2014 - Germany

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