The Germans could not hold back.
There was certainly no "One Love" armband on team captain Manuel Neuer as many had speculated, but a clear marking in the form of all players holding a hand over their mouth in connection with the mandatory team photo before the match.
The match then?
Yes, in that they did significantly worse.
They did create plenty of scoring chances, had by far the most possession and made it 1-0 from the penalty spot through Ilkay Gündogan in the 33rd minute.
But they were horribly inefficient – and it paid off in the end.
First, Ritsu Doan was quickest on a rebound in the 75th minute and then Takuma Asano sealed the game barely ten minutes later after finding the back of the net behind Manuel Neuer from a tight angle.
Bad for the Germans who created a lot of chances:
• Super talent Jamal Musiala, 19, came close to scoring twice again after fine individual efforts.
• Joshua Kimmich fired a long-range shot that Japanese goalkeeper Shuichi Gonda struggled to save.
• Kai Havertz had a goal disallowed for offside.
• Ilkay Gündogan hit the post.
• In the 71st minute, Gonda was forced to make four (!) saves in just over 30 seconds when the German attack was up front and worried.