What is up, people of the internet? So, you may know that the World Cup is just around the corner and we here at BFW are putting together a series of articles about Germany in the build-up to the tournament itself. Teddy is already working on the top 10 goals that Germany has scored in World Cup history, so I proposed an idea that we should relive the best wins that Die Mannschaft has experienced. Which is why I’m here to introduce my top 10 Germany wins at the World Cup.
For this, I’m going to include
matches that I know and watched in person (live, on the TV, haven’t got the facilities to watch Germany live in the stadium yet) and I will also rank each match based on how special the match is to me.
9. West Germany 2-1 Netherlands, 1974 World Cup Final
Despite winning the 1954 World Cup and developing a reputation for being European and world heavyweights, West Germany had to wait twenty years to win its next World Cup. Went out to eventual finalists and hosts Sweden in 1958, went out to a single goal against Yugoslavia in the Quarterfinals in 1962, were unfortunate (to put it lightly) to lose the final in 1966 to hosts England, and fell short in the Semifinals to Italy in 1970.
West Germany ended up hosting the 1974 edition of the World Cup and made it to the final against another formidable team: the Johan Cruyff-led Netherlands team who implemented stole the show with their Total Football (derived from the way the Hungarian super team played in the 1950s).
The teams are ready, the match officials are ready, but the game can’t start yet; the corner flags weren’t there. How so? The closing ceremony of that tournament was held before the match itself. With the corner flags reinstalled and that mishap out of the way, the match can finally begin. West Germany was probably longing of the day it would finally win its second World Cup, and after missing out in 1966 they have the chance to win it. On home soil, no less. The Dutch kicked the match off.
The atmosphere was electric, the rivalry between the two countries was going strong and you can be sure that both teams were desperate to win this. Bragging rights were on the line and losing to your bitter rival and neighbors is nothing short of a national humiliation. You can imagine the jeers, the boos, and the whistles from the crowd. Interestingly, the referee joined in with the whistling: Netherlands just won a penalty within the first minute of the match. Unfassbar!
The Dutch wasted no time playing the ball around before Cruyff took the ball just past the halfway line and took on the entire German team by himself. Future Bayern Munich executive Uli Hoeneß had to take matter into his own hands by stopping the Dutch star, but it was a late challenge that was no doubt a penalty.
This was a nightmare start for the hosts: they hadn’t even touched the ball once and before they knew it the Dutch have a penalty. Johan Neeskens made no mistake from the spot, and the Netherlands was on top with 88 minutes to go in the match. It remains the fastest goal ever scored in a World Cup final.
Perhaps the Germans got flashbacks of 1954 when the Hungarians went not one, but two up inside the first 10 minutes. If there was something that the Germans knew, it was mounting comebacks in the World Cup final, like in the final 20 years before. Although the Germans were rattled, they soon regained their composure and were rewarded with a penalty of their own when Bernd Hölzenbein showed Cruyff up by doing a solo run of his own after which Wim Jansen lunged in for a late tackle. These two penalties were the first ones given in World Cup Final history.
Up stepped Paul Breitner, and Germany were level after 25 minutes played. This seemed to knock the rhythm into the team as they pushed for a winner, and they got it two minutes from the end of the first half. Rainer Bonhof skipped past his marker on the right wing before delivering a low cross to Bayern legend Gerd Müller, who did a spectacular turn-and-finish under pressure from Arie Haan inside the Dutch box to put the Germans ahead for the first time in the match.
The stadium exploded as the hosts took the lead, and this seemed to influence the Dutch as Cruyff was cautioned for arguing with referee Jack Taylor at half time, so perhaps the composure was disappearing from this star-studded team. The opposite seems to be the case, as not only they but the Germans too pursued another goal with vigor.
Müller thought he’d scored a third for his team, but he was flagged offside. The Dutch knew that time was running out and they had to do something to salvage the match but try as they might, nothing came from their efforts. In fact, it was the Germans who got another big moment when Hölzenbein fell again in the box but this time it wasn’t enough for a penalty. The Germans held their nerve and came out 2-1 winners to win their second World Cup ever.
The Germans were the first European champions to win the World Cup, having won the Euros two years ago, and it’s not until 2010 when Spain achieved this feat by winning Euro 2008 and then winning the 2010 World Cup. France did it backwards when it won the 1998 World Cup before winning Euro 2000.
In a similar vein to the Hungarians of 1954, the Dutch would be beset by misfortune as it would become the most accomplished nation to have never won the World Cup. They reached the final in the very next tournament in 1978 but fell 3-1 to Argentina; in 2010, they narrowly lost to Spain in South Africa. Despite various periods of success and talented players, the wait for a first World Cup would be a long one for the Netherlands and it remains to be seen if they will ever win it.
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