With most of the headlines so far being made by goal-hungry reigning champions USA, happy hosts France, upwardly mobile hopefuls England and the Netherlands, Aussie striker Sam Kerr, and that eejit in the VAR truck, Germany have arrived at the knockout stage almost unannounced. That’s two-time world champions Germany. Eight-time European champions Germany. Current Olympic champions Germany. Three wins out of three in this year’s groups without conceding a goal Germany. Yes, you remember them.
The loss to injury of playmaker Dzsenifer Marozsán, who broke her toe in Germany’s opening match with China, goes a little way to explaining the slightly subdued expectations of the Nationalelf. But they’ve come out of the group with a perfect record, having spread the goals around the team; there have been six of them, by five different scorers. They’re currently on a 15-match unbeaten run in all competitions. Alexandra Popp, who manages on average a goal every other cap, could be making her 100th appearance today. Oh, and Marozsán could get a run-out as sub, which would augur well for the rest of the tournament …
… because the assumption is that Germany will progress. They’ve met Nigeria twice before in World Cup competition, and won both matches, scoring five times and letting in nothing. Nigeria have played European opposition at the World Cup on a dozen occasions, losing nine and winning just the once, against Denmark in 1999. And while Germany sailed through the groups, Nigeria only squeaked through as the fourth-best third-placed team, a 2-0 win over a poor South Korea their only positive result.
But in football, nothing’s ever certain. And there’s always hope. Nigeria might be the underdogs today, but they can boast Barcelona’s Asisat Oshoala in their ranks. The former Liverpool and Arsenal striker came off the bench in this year’s Champions League final to score Barca’s consolation against Lyon, and has already contributed to this World Cup with a glorious finish against the Koreans, rounding the keeper and slotting home from a tight angle with poise and panache. As Thomas Dennerby, Nigeria’s head coach, says: “If we score, they may get nervous and we will have a chance.”
So this promises to be a belter. It’s the knockout stages of the World Cup! It’s the Super Eagles and the Nationalelf! It’s on!
Kick off: 4.30pm BST, 5.30pm local at the Stade des Alpes, Grenoble.