A MIGHTY FALL

GERMANY WERE ONCE TRENDSETTERS IN WORLD FOOTBALL, BUT HAVE SEEN THEIR FORTUNES DECLINE IN RECENT TIMES 

- Mogamad Allie

"Football is a simple game. Twenty-two men chase a ball for 90 minutes and at the end, the Germans always win."

Those famous words spoken by legendary former England striker Gary Lineker, following a heartbreaking defeat on penalties in the semifinals of the 1990 World Cup, aptly encapsulated his country's frustration at their inability to beat Germany at international meets.

Notwithstanding England's dramatic 4-2 victory after extra time over Die Mannschaft in the 1966 final, Germany, together with Brazil, have always been regarded as the team to beat on the international stage. Their record of four titles and four runner-up finishes (with three of each played as West Germany) is a clear manifestation of their success at the highest level of the game.

But Germany's national senior teams, much like Brazil, have had lean times over the past decade. Just nine years after becoming the first European nation to win the World Cup in South America, they have failed to progress beyond the group stages of the two subsequent tournaments.

Joachim Löw's side, who reduced home fans in Belo Horizonte's Mineirão Stadium to tears with their record 7-1 annihilation of the five-time champions at the 2014 World Cup, were a pale shadow of themselves at Russia 2018, exiting the tournament at the group stage for the first time since 1938, when the second World Cup finals were staged in Italy.

Another early departure at last year's World Cup in Qatar, coupled with a poor performance at Euro 2020, when they were eliminated in the second round - by England, of all countries prompted some deep soul-searching about the philosophy, or lack of it, of German football since the country claimed its fourth World Cup just under a decade ago.