Costa Rica vs Germany LIVE: Pressure is on Hansi Flick’s side who face must-win clash to keep their World Cup hopes alive… and they throw fit again Leroy Sane into the starting line-up to chase victory
Follow Sportsmail’s live blog for the World Cup Group E clash between Costa Rica and Germany.
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¡VAMOS MUCHACHOS! 🇨🇷🇨🇷🇨🇷#FCRF #LaSele #PuraVidaEnQatar22 #qatar2022 #FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/RcJ5PzeQhu
They reached the quarter-finals back in 2014 – beating Italy and Uruguay along the way, but how big would getting a result against Germany against those matches. Don’t forget victory would eliminate the four-time winners.
It’s a big one. Fit again Leroy Sane is indeed back in the team and he replaces defender Thilo Kehrer.
Thomas Muller keeps his place in attack despite being outclassed by Niclas Fullkrug who replaced him against Spain to score the late equaliser.
Unsere Startelf für 🇨🇷🇩🇪! 🔥#CRCGER #GER #WM2022 pic.twitter.com/dZZY03cIAZ
Big evening for them – let’s hope they don’t have too much nonsense to put up with. We’ve already had some bizarre calls from the Croatia game today where Premier League referee Anthony Taylor was made to check an offside call on a pitchside monitor… I mean isn’t that what VAR is for?
Canada 1-2 Morocco: Africans top the group and reach the last-16 after a whirlwind start as the Canadians bow out of the World Cup with three defeats in Group F
That draw meanwhile means Morocco have impressively won Group E and will now face the runner up of the group Germany and Costa Rica play in tonight. The table toppers will face Croatia.
With all due respect to Morocco, I think most teams would rather avoid Luka Modric and Co and that could make group dynamics in approach rather interesting this evening. Play for second place?
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Belgians crash OUT of the World Cup after 0-0 stalemate against Croatia as Romelu Lukaku misses THREE sitters after coming on at half-time
Our first big victim of the World Cup is Belgium who have lost to Croatia and gone out of the group stage after a 0-0 draw.
The big story central to their exit was the amount of chances Romelu Lukaku missed on a nightmare evening for the Inter Milan forward on loan from Chelsea.
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And what a game it was! It was the opening game of the 2006 World Cup and it set the tone for a cracking tournament.
Germany triumphed 4-2 with Philipp Lahm and Torsten Frings scoring cracking goals and Miroslav Klose also netting twice.
Old Costa Rica favourite Paulo Wanchope managed to grab his side’s two goals.
Familiar ground to Germany – in fact they played their last game here when they drew 1-1 with Spain. That’s basically a home advantage isn’t it? The scene is set in Al Khor.
WORLD CUP PERMUTATIONS: What Spain, Germany and the rest need to seal a spot in the last-16 as the last round of the World Cup group stage gets underway… after Argentina, Poland and Australia reached the next round
We have just focused on Germany and Costa Rica here but if you wish to check out all the permutations across all group then check out our handy file below…
Germany simply must win to have any hope of staying in the World Cup – and even that would not be enough if Japan defeat Spain.
Costa Rica also need to win to reach the last-16 but a draw could also see them progress if Spain beat Japan.
Goal difference comes into play with other results – so let’s cross those bridges when we come to them…
FIFA fine German FA £8,800 after they failed to send a player to their press conference ahead of their World Cup clash with Spain due to their training base being a three-hour round trip from Doha
SAM BROOKES: FIFA have fined the German FA after they failed to put a player forward to attend the press conference ahead of their World Cup match with Spain.
A player is obligated to be sent to each press conference the day before their match to take questions alongside their manager.
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First ever all-female World Cup refereeing team includes French nursery worker’s daughter who first picked up a whistle aged 13, weightlifting Brazilian who was told to ‘do the laundry’ by footballing great and Mexican who used to be paid £2.34 a game
TOM PYMAN: The milestone appointments have been welcomed by both managers, with Germany coach Hansi Flick saying he trusts the officials ‘100 per cent’, while Costa Rica boss Luis Fernando Suarez described it as a major step forward for the ‘very sexist’ football industry.
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Stephanie Frappart to make history by becoming the first woman to referee a men’s World Cup match… and the French official will be part of an ALL-FEMALE team in charge of Germany’s must-win clash against Costa Rica
French referee Stephanie Frappart will become the first woman to take charge of a men’s World Cup game when she takes charge this evening.
I’m surprised it has not happened a lot sooner to be honest. We’ve long had female officials in top leagues around the world – and that includes referees in Germany’s top flight the Bundesliga.
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Just in case you need reminding of how Germany went out in 2018…
And I’m sure Germany won’t need reminding of this. It was South Korea’s 2-0 victory in Russia four years ago that sent the defending champions out of the group stage by finishing bottom.
Costa Rica may arguably not be of the standard of South Korea but they only need a draw to cause the unthinkable to happen again…
We thought it was impossible at the last World Cup when Germany tumbled out at the first hurdle. But could it happen again?
Their mission is apparently simple – beat Costa Rica. But even that may not be enough… Good afternoon all and welcome to what should be another exciting evening of this cracking World Cup.
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