Defending champions Germany will be looking to avoid a humiliating group-stage exit when they take on South Korea in their last Group F Game.
Who would have thought that Germany would be in such a precarious situation at the group stage? They had a disastrous start to the campaign, losing 1-0 to Mexico.
Interestingly, their title-defense would have gone up in smoke had Toni Kroos not scored the winner in the dying minutes against good-looking Sweden.
With their campaign now revived, Joachim Low’s men would be looking to seal their passage to the next stage when they take on South Korea on Wednesday (June 27).
A defeat, however, would see them leave Russia with a dubious record. The four-time World Cup-winning team has never been eliminated in the first group stage.
Italy (1950 and 2010), Brazil (1966), France (2002) and Spain (2014) are the World Cup holders who were eliminated in the group stage fixtures while defending the coveted trophy.
Coach Low reiterated his side will take control of their own qualification.
“We need to have clarity in our own result. We know what we need to do and we’ll look at our own performance, we will try and be the masters of our own destiny,” Low maintained.
On the other hand, South Korea also have very slim chances of making it to the next stage. For that, they would need to beat the Germans, hope Sweden lose to Mexico and amass a better goal difference than Germany and Sweden.
While coach Shin Tae-yong was realistic about the chances of his team. He said South Korea would take confidence from the fact that Germany had also made a disappointing start to their campaign.
“To be honest, Germany are a lot stronger than us and it won’t be easy,” he said.
“But the ball is round, anything can happen, and I believe there will be chances for us. Mexico beat Germany in their match so there is hope for us. Although it’s likely that Germany will have more possession, we will do our best,” Tae-young added.
“We must make it as difficult as possible for Germany to play their own game and instead of having too many thoughts in their heads, the players must play simply and accurately. It will be a last-ditch effort,” he added.
Also, Sportzwiki brings you all you need to know ahead of the clash between the two sides.
Venue and time:
South Korea and Germany will lock horns at the Kazan Arena, Kazan. The action will begin at 11:30 PM IST on Wednesday.
Players to look out for:
South Korea – Son Heung-min:
With a win by a good margin needed to keep their slim hopes alive, Korea will bank heavily on the Tottenham forward.
Son had scored a stunner against Mexico and would be looking to put up even a better show against Germany.
Germany – Marco Reus:
While the win against Sweden kept the reigning champions alive in the competition, there is no denying that they are yet to click as a team.
But unlike the team, Marco Reus has done reasonably well. He has looked a constant threat in attack so far and would be keen on delivering a similar performance in the crunch clash.
Where to watch:
The Indian fans will enjoy extensive coverage of the game. The coverage of the match will be telecasted on SONY TEN 2 SD and HD channels.
The Hindi feed will be aired on SONY TEN 3 SD and HD channels. Bengali and Malayali feed will be available on SONY ESPN SD channel.
Possible line-ups:
Korea Republic:
Jo Hyeonwoo; Lee Yong, Kim Younggwon, Jang Hyunsoo, Hong Chul; Hwang Heechan, Koo Jacheol, Jeong Wooyoung, Lee Seungwoo; Lee Jaesung, Son Heung-min
Germany:
Manuel Neuer; Joshua Kimmich, Niklas Sule, Mats Hummels, Jonas Hector – Ilkay Gundogan, Toni Kroos; Thomas Muller, Marco Reus, Timo Werner; Mario Gomez.
Follow live score on Sportzwiki.