Germany and Argentina in contrast

AGONY of defeat. Ecstasy of victory. Both are cliches. No matter.

By nature, cliches are handy. They make us lazy. They make us non-thinkers. And, yes, they are enemies of creativity.

But then, a t times, they can be o f help. They are like a pair of old shoes. They are just there. They just lie there. And, suddenly popping out while rummaging through your junk-filled vault, treasure trove if you will, they’d look as tempting as ice cream in the scorching heat. You become sentimental.

Memories of old come flashing back. Before you know it, you are stepping out of the house wearing ’em good oldies.

The thing is, if they make us feel good again wearing them, why not?

Grab the chance to be rejuvenated. Old stuff can also be as reinvigorating at times as brand-new buys.

And so, to get to the point, to cut to the chase, it’s agony of defeat for Germany and ecstacy of victory for Argentina.

Germany dropped a 2-0 shocker to ousted South Korea before a stunned crowd of 42,000 in Kazan, Russia, on Thursday.

The loss eliminated the defending champion for the first time in the opening elimination round in 80 years, disemboweling the Germans out of the semifinals and beyond in every World Cup since 2002.

Grotesquely, German’s chief architects seemed to admit they deserve their dethronement.

“You didn’t get the feeling that we were playing at a World Cup,” said team captain and goalkeeper Manuel Neuer.

Thomas Mueller, the pillar of the 2014 champion German team, said he himself seemed “strangely unable” to influence events “this time.”

And then this eulogy from German coach Joachim Loew:

“We didn’t deserve to win the title. We didn’t deserve to get into the last 16. We wanted to win but we didn’t have what it takes.”

A screaming proof to that was Germany finishing bizarrely at the bottom of the group.

As to Argentina, well, I was all set to shed tears for Argentina until Lionel Messi resurrected himself and combined with Rojo for Evita’s 2-1 win over Nigeria and a slot to the next round.

Messi, much maligned earlier for his soso performances, ended up singing, “Don’t cry for me Argentina, the truth is I never left you...”

Long live cliches!