Actor of the last title to glory of the Mannschaft, crowned at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, then of its fall, Thomas Müller summed up in a few words this Thursday evening the feeling of all of Germany in football: "It's a disaster absolute.

For the second consecutive World Cup, after that of 2018 in Russia, the Bayern Munich striker and his colleagues did not pass the group stage in Qatar.

This marks 18 months of a Euro at home.

The last minutes of the interminable additional time of the match against Costa Rica no longer had any interest, and in his zone the German coach Hansi Flick understood: the victory of his players (4-2) was going to be useless. , because a few tens of kilometers away, Japan had just beaten Spain (2-1).



The Japanese success combined with the too weak German victory allowed the Japanese, first in group E with six points, to climb once again in the round of 16 with the Spaniards, who retained a more favorable goal difference compared to the Germany (+6 against 1), the two selections finishing at four points.

"For me, it's an absolute disaster, if it were to be my last match, dropped Thomas Müller, evasive about his future, to the public channel ARD.

It hurts incredibly, because our result could have been enough.

We have a feeling of helplessness.

»

Already disappointing at Euro 2021

Gary Lineker's famous formula "And in the end it is Germany who wins" has taken more and more lead in the wing in recent years, since three years after the incredible Russian fiasco, the Germans had been eliminated of Euro 2021 by England (0-2), from the round of 16.

For the first time in its post-war history, they had missed the quarter-finals of a major tournament twice in a row (Euro and World Cup), and Qatari disillusion confirms a certain decline.

The Germans dragged the initial loss against Japan (1-2) like a cannonball and, after the draw against Spain (1-1), knew before going on the lawn of the Al-Bayt stadium that they did not have their future in the tournament entirely in their hands.

Flick does not intend to resign

Successor to Joachim Löw after Euro 2021, Hansi Flick recalled on Wednesday that his contract ran until 2024 and that he was delighted to play this tournament at home.

He repeated that there was no reason to resign, but the pressure will be enormous on his shoulders in the coming days.

In the past, Germany have already experienced such a situation, with two pitiful eliminations in the first round of a major tournament four years apart.

In 2000 and 2004, she left the Euro in the first round, before climbing to the semi-finals of the 2006 World Cup at home two years later.

Hope brings life, especially when it has the features of the young and talented attacking midfielder Jamal Musiala (19), who brings a rare brightening in the current grayness.


Sport

World Cup 2022: "France has repositioned itself as a contender", says Claude Puel

Sport

World Cup 2022: How the "shy" Stéphanie Frappart came to mark the history of arbitration

  • Sport

  • World Cup 2022

  • Germany

  • Qatar