Germans on the ropes until Toni hits Swede with a sucker punch

Toni Kroos put his foot on the gas with a stunner five minutes into injury time to stop Germany careering to a World Cup exit.

The Real Madrid workhorse curled in a sublime strike from an indirect free- kick with Germany staring down the barrel of a shock exit.

A sickness bug had hit the Swedish camp in the run- up to the Sochi clash, leading Pontus Jansson, Filip Helander and Marcus Rohden to fly out separately.

But it was German stomachs churning 13 minutes before half-time.

Ola Toivonen dinked over Manuel Neuer with the composure the world champions had been craving.

Toni Kroos uncharacteristically passed the ball away inside the centre circle before it was spread out right to Viktor Claesson.

Toivonen turned on the afterburners to peel between two German defenders and into the box as Claesson’s cross floated into his path.

Cracking chest control then set up the ex-Sunderland striker to clip the ball over Neuer as Antonio Rudi- ger’s last- ditch intervention went unrewarded.

Nineteen shots in Ligue 1 for Toulouse last season, no goals. Two shots in the World Cup, a goal. Still, it’s a record Toivonen would take all day long with Germany bound for home.

Joachim Low’s composed bunch were starting to crack as Sweden keeper Robin Olsen threw himself to his right to deny Ilkay Gundogan’s deflected 25-yard shot.

Neuer m a y h a v e b e e n unimpressive for the opener but reminded his team-mates just how valuable he is two minutes into firsthalf injury time.

Seb Larsson’s whipped ball teed up Marcus Berg perfectly to glance a header towards the far post only for the Bayern Munich keeper to use every inch of his giant frame to touch it around the post.

Despite his heroics Germany were facing the embarrassment of being hit by the world champions curse.

Four times in the last five World Cups the defending champs were home before the knockout stage.

Mario Gomez replaced Julian Draxler at the break as Low sought to stop a first- round World Cup exit for the first time in Germany’s history since 1938. And it only took three minutes for his half-time team talk to reap a reward as Marco Reus send an equaliser bobbling home.