World Cup 2022: 'Germany exit as a fallen giant of world football'

Football is easy to play. The Germans always win when there are 22 men chasing a ball for 90 minutes.

It feels like an age since Gary Lineker uttered this famous phrase, yet it reflects a reality that feels even further away after Germany's latest World Cup embarrassment.

Despite a chaotic 4-2 win against Costa Rica, Germany bowed out of the World Cup on goal difference, with Japan's win over Spain proving to be the final nail in the coffin.

Germany failed to get out of their group at the World Cup for the second year in a row.

In previous tournaments, it had not happened.

Germany finds themselves dangerously close to falling into football's 'B List'.

The sight of Germany's players looking at a bank of empty red seats at the end of a painful campaign made many of their fans leave the premises.

It came at the end of a night that promised to be one of the most significant in World Cup history, as Costa Rica came back from a 2-0 deficit to beat Germany.

Costa Rica were going through with Japan.

Germany and Spain were on their way out. What were the odds of that happening?

It did not last. Kai Havertz scored twice and Niclas Fullkrug scored four times.

Germany had a win that they needed to survive. Japan's win over Spain ensured that.

Germany's head coach Hansi Flick looked devastated at the end of the game, defender Antonio Rudiger slumped, and veteran goalkeeper Manuel Neuer stared blankly.

Germany's elimination stands as a shock, based on reputation and past history, but they can have no complaints, just as they did in Russia when they finished bottom of a group that included Mexico and South Korea.

Maybe this latest disappointment for a country with a rich history shouldn't come as a big surprise.

The first signs of the armour being damaged were seen just four years after they won the trophy.

Germany were average in Euro 2020, going out to England in the last 16 after an undistinguished tournament, and all the evidence shows that there is no fear factor associated with the white shirt.

The man who took over from Low was the one who won the trophy.

They lost to Japan in their first game in the country. Despite a hard earned point against Spain and a win against Costa Rica, this left them vulnerable.

In Germany, the expectation of success is such that a lengthy inquest into how it went wrong is certain. They will be shocked by this.

With the country hosting Euro 2024, the rehabilitation will need to be swift and effective. It's impossible for a flop in front of their support to be the same.

There are signs that the old guard who have sustained them through so many successes is starting to get old, as evidenced by the fact that Germany have an outstanding young talent in 19-year-old Jamal Musiala.

Neuer will probably play his last World Cup. Muller was taken off here because he missed an easy headed chance early on. The Manchester City player is 32 years old.

The 29-year-old Fullkrug only found his way into the World Cup squad because of injuries to two other players.

There will be a lot of hard talking once they return home and recover from the failure in Qatar, but Joshua Kimmich will be crucial in the next stage of Germany's development.

"When you go out twice in the first round and once in the round of 16 it's very bitter," Havertz said in his post match interview.

Everything has not been going well for the last four years.

We were knocked out in the group stage. We're not a tournament team anymore.

The person said that they had just been eliminated. We can get up and get back to normal. We will be able to implement our ideas in the future.

We need to look at the World Cup differently. We will do it very soon, this is the next step. The basics are needed again.

I'm a very critical person and we will look at everything.

The bottom line is that Germany didn't display their usual solidity in defence and were easy to beat. The combination is lethal in football tournaments.

The past couple of weeks may have been the final confirmation that Germany's air of invincibility has ended.

As a fallen giant of world football, they fly out of the country.

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