Italy did it in 1934 and 1938 and Brazil managed to match the feat with back-to-back World Cup titles in 1958 and 1968 but the modern football era has never seen a nation defend its FIFA World Cup title.
History In the Making
More than half a century later with football a completely different sport to the times when the likes of Guiseppe Meazza, Silvio Piola or Garrincha graced the international scene, a young and infinitely talented Germany squad is out to add its name to the history books.
The four-time world champions from 1954, 1974, 1990 and 2014 have had the perfect warm-up for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia with a Confederations Cup title won this summer and seem instoppable in their mission to add another World Cup trophy to the cabinet.
The FIFA-organised international competition earlier this summer in Russia was seen as an opportunity for Joachim Low to explore the depth of his squad at a time when Germany was met with a dose of doubt given the fact that Die Mannschaft travelled to Russia with a second-string side.
The much-changed World Cup winning team romped over its rivals to the Confederations Cup title in style by beating Chile 1-0 in the final. Lars Stindl’s goal made all the difference for the German team that returned home with a trophy that’s been a huge morale boost ahead of the crucial stage of the World Cup qualifying campaign.
Impressive Route to the Final Showpiece in Russia
Die Mannschaft continued the unstoppable march through Group C with three successive 2018 FIFA World Cup wins which maintained the perfect record for a team which made a close-to-perfect comeback from the frustrating Euro 2016 semi-final elimination at the hands of hosts France.
The 18-match unbeaten streak was achieved on Thursday night when rampant Germany ran over otherwise impressive Northern Ireland in a comfortable 3-1 win.
Germany clinched their World Cup ticket with a game to spare and will head into the Azerbaijan fixture on Sunday eager to celebrate the success with their home fans at Fritz-Walter-Stadium in Kaiserslautern.
The breath-taking triumph saw Germany extend its astonishing record of having never lost an away World Cup qualifier in their history when everyone expected that Joachim Low’s side could suffer a blow in Belfast due to the absence of key players such as Mesut Ozil, Sami Khedira, Marco Reus, Mario Gotze and Manuel Neuer.
Sebastian Rudy’s spine-tingling 30-yard thunder opened the scoring early on with Sandro Wagner following up with an emphatic strike inside the box before Joshua Kimmich landed a sweet volley for a three-goal cushion and another demonstration of power.
Josh Magennis scored a late consolation goal which will have little damage to Germany’s overall impression.
Close to Perfect Squad
With only six World Cup winners available to him in Belfast, Joachim Low once again managed to demonstrate that no German team is a weak team.
He was recently asked what aspect of his team’s play needs improvement and he replied – efficiency – which is aprefect testiment to German’s relentless nature. As people that are never satisfied and whose vocabulary does not contain the word complacency, Germans are currently atop of Group C with an impressive 38-3 goal difference.
And do not doubt for one second that they will slow down and release the throttle in their final qualifier.
The quality of German play is unbelievable, epsecially in terms of off-ball movement and transition. Constantly pressing and going forward, Germany at times seems impossible to get dispossessed and even if you manage to snatch the ball away from them they will hunt you down in intimidating numbers.
The individual quality of their players is something that makes them a constant threat. With players not older than 28 and 29 leading the way in the squad, the future looks bright for Joachim Low’s side who will be a team to beat in Russia.
Die Mannschaft have already been installed as firm favourites at 5/1 betting odds to lift the trophy in Russia and defend their title and we don’t think anyone would be brave enough to bet against them.
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