GERMANY OUT: DON’T MENTION THE VAR!
SOUTH KOREA’S STUNNING SUCCESS SENDS LACKLUSTRE HOLDERS OUT IN BOTTOM PLACE
Germany boss Joachim Low has admitted his shock at the reigning champions’ World Cup exit after a stunning 2-0 defeat by South Korea.
The four-time champions finished bottom of Group F yesterday after stoppage-time goals from Kim Young-gwon and Son Heung-min secured a famous – and deserved – win for Korea in a dramatic conclusion in Kazan.
It is the first time the Germans have gone out of the finals in the group stage and left Low fielding questions over his future. He said: “Of course, it takes a couple of hours to look into that. I’m shocked, I’m shocked because we didn’t manage to pull it off.
“Where we go from here, we’ll have to talk about it calmly. It will take me some hours now to come to terms with it. I’m incredibly disappointed by this elimination.”
Germany saw Sweden clinch a 3-0 victory against Mexico, meaning a win against South Korea would have been enough to progress.
However, the four-time winners were once again far from at their best, with defender Mats Hummels particularly wasteful in front of goal in the second half after being pushed up in desperation.
Kim was not so profligate when he fired home from close range – although he was initially given offside before a VAR review sparked renewed celebrations – and Son completed the job, after German keeper Manuel Neuer was caught in possession deep in the Korean half.
Asked about Kim’s strike, which was allowed after Toni Kroos was shown to have played the ball backwards, Low said: “The player was in an offside position – that’s what I saw.”
He added: “Our team was missing the ease of play and theclassinessthatwenormally display. Also the dynamism that led to the goalscoring opportunities was not there, so we deserve to be eliminated.”
For opposite number Shin Tae-yong, there were mixed feelings, with Germany’s scalp only partial compensation for his side’s exit from the finals.
Shin, who had given South Korea a one per cent chance of victory before the game, said: “I feel great, but at the same time, I feel a little bit empty.
“I told my players it was really a last-ditch effort for them and I told them that they had to fight until the very end.
“Germany are the defending champions, they are No 1 in the FIFA rankings. They probably felt they would be able to beat us – because that’s what everybody thought – so I hoped we could use that as a reverse strategy, and that really hit the nail on the head.”