Germany vs Sweden: Joachim Löw gambles, Jerome Boateng a ticking timebomb, Toni Kroos proves his talent
Germany 2-1 Sweden: Five things we learned from the Group H encounter in Sochi
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Your support makes all the difference.Germany lived to fight another day after battling from behind to beat Sweden 2-1, with Toni Kroos scoring a dramatic last-minute winner to keep their hopes of retaining the World Cup alive.
At one stage it looked as though the reigning world champions were heading for an early exit.
Defeat in Sochi would have confirmed their premature departure, and when Ola Toivonen delightfully chipped the ball over Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, Joachim Löw must have feared the worst.
Having left out the likes of Mesut Özil and Sami Khedira out due to the 1-0 defeat by Mexico, Löw chucked on as many attacking options as possible, and he was rewarded when Marco Reus came up with close-range finish that deflected into the back of the net.
A draw would still have left Germany needing a heavy victory over South Korea next Wednesday and hope that Mexico beat the Swedes, but there was one last twist in the tail.
From a free-kick, Toni Kroos rolled the ball to Reus, the striker teed it up and Kroos curled the ball past Robin Olsen to spark wild celebrations and keep Germany alive and fighting.
1. To his credit, Joachim Löw was determined not to play it safe against Sweden.
Rocked from seeing his side play so poorly in their first game loss to Mexico, he decided to ring the changes, to freshen up his midfield and reassert his authority over this team of superstars.
Out went Mesut Ozil, Sami Khedira and Marvin Plattenhardt. In came Marco Reus, Jonas Hector and Sebastian Rudy. The injured Mats Hummels meanwhile made way for Antonio Ruediger.
His gamble paid off, though talk about leaving it late.
2. No doubt about Neuer’s lack of fitness
There were doubts about Manuel Neuer’s fitness in the build-up to this World Cup and while that has undoubtedly played a part in his performance, should there be doubts about his level now?
A single first-half one-on-one save apart, he looked very suspect, not least for the goal – where he was less than commanding – and one awkward late stop where he got his feet wrong.
Again, just another drop-off from 2014.
3. Boateng a shambles waiting to happen
Roberto Mancini saw it, Pep Guardiola fixed it, but in Jerome Boateng there has always been the potential for him to fall apart. Whenever Bayern Munich have crumbled in the Champions League, Boateng has been part of the problem.
For the first time, Germany saw the full effect of that breakdown.
Boateng was at sixes and sevens in his ‘partnership’ with Antonio Rudiger, if you can call it that, and was lucky not to concede an early penalty. He made far too many rash challenges, earned himself an early yellow card, and when he flew into the back of Marcus Berg he left referee Szymon Marciniak with no other option than to send him off.
That will rule him out of Germany’s final game against South Korea where goals will be the order of the day, although on this performance Boateng has made a difficult decision next week much easier for himself.
4. A moment to dream of for Toivonen
One of Ola Toivonen’s Sunderland teammates once said of the big Swede that he was so slow that John O’Shea would have beaten him in a foot race.
Regrettably that ultimate test of athleticism never came to pass but Toivonen was only a brief resident of the north-east before returning to Ligue 1 with Toulouse.
Back in a league where he had enjoyed success with Rennes, the target man is playing again and enjoying life but never will he have experienced such a moment as this, in Fisht Stadium, where his goal looked like dragging Sweden close to an improbable Group F progression.
And what a dream way to do it.
Toivonen’s cushioned chest control, his subsequent strength to hold off challenging defenders and then his dinked finish over, many would argue, the world’s best goalkeeper was a moment to treasure forever. The world was stunned. Germany were heading home at the group stage.
Playing in the World Cup is so significant because it is watched all over the earth and forms memories that are remembered for generations.
Toivonen’s goal, as improbable as it might have seemed during his time on Wearside, will become one of those moments in Swedish World Cup folklore, sucker-punching the world champions and putting Sweden ahead. Eventually they would feel the inevitable force of the Germans but for Toivonen, it was a career highlight not to be forgotten.
5. Anonymous Kroos comes up trumps when he’s needed
By all accounts, Toni Kroos had endured a shocker.
The Real Madrid midfielder had been anonymous throughout the match, with Sweden able to bypass the German midfield that repeatedly bombed forwards in the hope of troubling Robin Olsen’s goal – crucially leaving their defence horribly exposed.
Even when he lined up a late free-kick, four minutes into time added on, there were few who will have truly believed that he was about to change the face of the 2018 World Cup.
But quality players have an uncanny talent for coming up when they’re most needed. Think Cristiano Ronaldo last week, think Mario Götze four years ago and, now, think Toni Kroos.
With the wild celebrations set to go on long into the night, that goal will breathe new life into the German campaign.
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