Germany suffered a second successive World Cup humiliation by being eliminated at the group stage in Qatar — four years after the same result at Russia 2018.
Having lost 2-1 to Japan in their opening game at the tournament last week, Flick’s team needed to beat Costa Rica and hope that Spain would beat Japan in order to progress. Japan produced their second major upset of Qatar 2022 to beat Luis Enrique’s team, though, meaning Germany were powerless to save themselves against Los Ticos.
The early exit is likely to lead to a major overhaul in German football, with Flick’s position as coach now vulnerable. Long-serving players such as Thomas Muller, Manuel Neuer, Antonio Rudiger, Mario Gotze and Ilkay Gundogan also might have come to the end of the line on the international stage. With Germany due to host Euro 2024 in little more than 18 months from now, the need to renew the team and build around young talents such as Havertz and Jamal Musiala is now obvious.
This World Cup will signal the end of an era in German football, with the heroes of Brazil 2014 being moved on. Whether the new generation can emulate them remains to be seen.