Pragmatic Germany plays beautiful game

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This article was published 14/06/2010 (5956 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

DURBAN, South Africa — The last time Germany fielded so young a lineup at a FIFA World Cup, Marlene Dietrich was in the midst of her black-and-white/Josef von Sternberg phase at Paramount.

Seventy-six years is a lifetime ago.

Sunday evening must have seemed to last 76 years, second by second, for the Australians and their full-throated fans, who flocked to South Africa by the thousands in vain hopes of witnessing a Socceroo uprising.

“It was not an easy game for us,” a shaken Aussie coach Pim Verbeek said, in what must the understatement of the year. “We tried to make it very difficult for them and use our speed, but we didn’t have the ball in the first 20 minutes.”

German soccer is burned into the brain: Pragmatic. Efficient. Methodical. Sunday, the youngest German World Cup side since 1936 was brilliant. Beautiful. Stylish. It set the South African night alight. Yes. The Germans.

How sublime was Germany on this night? Well, its passing accuracy finished at 91.7 per cent, the fourth-highest single-match total at the World Cup since the stat was first tracked in 1966.

So over to you, Spain and Brazil.

One particular attacking move among a litany lingers in the mind. After a lovely interchange of passes, ever-marauding right back Philipp Lahm pulled the ball back from near the edge of the box, Mesut Oezil sold a dummy, and the amazing Thomas Mueller curled a shot a foot over the bar.

No goal to celebrate, but the entire move happened so smoothly, so seamlessly, so quickly.

Mueller would later make up for that miss, stopping up to leave defender Scott Chipperfield’s dead carcass for the vultures to enjoy, and rolled a shot in off the far post. A thing of beauty.

A red card to striker Tim Cahill for a clumsy challenge on Bastian Schweinsteiger made things simpler for Germany, but in truth the Aussies could have snuck 15 men onto the field and still absorbed a pistol-whipping.

Threatening early, a Chipperfield slip in midfield set Miroslav Klose off on a 20-yard gallop before piledriving a shot right at Aussie goalie Mark Schwarzer, the ball ping-ponging around from there and out for a corner. It was a hint of the carnage to come.

“We earned respect for ourselves,” said Klose. “It was hugely important to win the first game, but we’ve won nothing yet.”

No, nothing. Except every purist’s gratitude.

— Canwest News Service

Germany 2 2 — 4

Australia 0 0 — 0

First Half

1. Germany, Lukas Podolski 1, 8th minute

2. Germany, Miroslav Klose 1, 26th.

Second Half

3. Germany, Thomas Muller 1, 68th

4. Germany, Cacau 1, 70th.

Shots — Germany: 16; Australia: 12.

Shots On Goal — Germany: 9; Australia: 3.

Attendance — 62,660.