Germany 2-0 Japan: What’s your prediction?
Four-times world champions Germany will kick-off their World Cup campaign against Japan desperate to put the 2018 debacle behind them when the 2014 champions lost their first group match and crashed out in the first round, their earliest exit in over 80 years.
Japan, on the other hand, have never gone beyond the last 16 at a World Cup and narrowly missed out on the quarter-finals in Russia.
The Blue Samurai will have a thorough understanding of their mighty opposition as eight players of the current squad play in the Bundesliga.
Both teams play a narrow 4-2-3-1 and look to play in between tight spaces, creating neat combinations upfront but Germany, with the quality of the wide players they have at their disposal, will also look to use the flanks to create chances.
When?
23rd November, 07:00 pm, Bangladesh time
Where?
Khalifa International Stadium, Doha, Qatar
Head-to-head
Matches 4
Germany 2
Japan 0
Draw 2
Prediction: Germany 2-0 Japan
Probable lineups
Germany: (4-2-3-1) Neuer (GK), Raum, Rudiger, Sule, Kehrer, Gundogan, Kimmich, Musiala, Muller, Gnabry, Havertz
Japan: (4-2-3-1) Gonda (GK), Sakai, Tomiyasu, Yoshida, Nagamoto, Shibasaki, Endo, Kamada, Minamino, Soma, Maeda
Following is a statbox on Germany
FIFA Ranking: 11
Odds: 10-1
Previous tournaments:
Making their 20th World Cup appearance, Germany have won the title four times. After a surprise 1954 victory over favourites Hungary, they lifted the trophy as West Germany in 1974 at home and again in 1990 before their triumph at Brazil 2014.
They were also runners-up four times and reached at least the semi-finals in all editions between 2002 and 2014.
But they suffered a shock first round exit as defending champions at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, their earliest elimination in the tournament for 80 years.
How they qualified
The Germans, who started the qualifiers under then coach Joachim Loew before current coach Hansi Flick took over in September last year, had a near flawless run through Group J with nine wins and a loss.
Their only defeat was a 2-1 at home against North Macedonia.
They scored 36 goals and conceded just four as they finished top of the group that also included Romania, Armenia, Iceland and Liechtenstein.
Form guide
Germany had not lost a game under coach Hansi Flick until last month's home defeat by Hungary in the Nations League. They have won nine matches, drawn five and lost one under Flick.
While they beat arguably weaker opponents en route to their World Cup qualifying group win, they have struggled to show the same consistency against tougher opponents.
Their 3-3 draw against England at Wembley in their final real test before the finals showed Flick's team still need fine-tuning for the World Cup after giving up a two-goal lead.
Following is a statbox on Japan
FIFA Ranking: 24
Odds: 250-1
Previous tournaments:
Japan have played at every World Cup since their debut in 1998 and they first reached the last 16 as co-hosts with South Korea in 2002. Japan replicated that in South Africa in 2010 and again in Russia in 2018, where they were knocked out by Belgium, despite being two goals ahead and 21 minutes from reaching the quarter-finals for the first time. Japan exited in the group stages in 1998, 2006 and 2014.
How they qualified:
Japan advanced with a game remaining after a late double from substitute Kaoru Mitoma secured a 2-0 win away to Australia and a second-place finish behind Saudi Arabia with seven wins in 10 matches. In an earlier Asian qualifying round, Japan scored 46 times in their eight matches, with nine from Takumi Minamino, and thrashed Mongolia 14-0 for their biggest-ever win in World Cup qualifying.
Form guide:
Japan's results since booking their World Cup spot have been mixed. The Samurai Blue beat the United States 2-0 and had a 0-0 draw with Ecuador at the Kirin Challenge Cup in Germany in September. In friendlies, all on home turf, in June, Japan beat Paraguay and Ghana convincingly but lost to Brazil and Tunisia.