INSTANT REACTION | Germany 7-1 Curaçao: Germany survive an early scare to claim all three points | OneFootball

Germany vs Curaçao, the biggest mismatch in World Cup history? Quite possibly.

Germany have been crowned world champions four times, whereas Curaçao are making their debut and are the smallest nation to ever qualify for the World Cup, with a population of around 156,000. To put that into perspective for our British friends, this is like Germany vs Swindon, and for our American readers, this is Germany vs Santa Cruz in California. 

The game started as you’d expect, with Germany in complete control, and only took six minutes to find the opener via Felix Nmecha. 

However, Curaçao soon proved to the world that they’re not here to sit back and try to keep the score to a minimum. They looked pacey on the break, particularly from the likes of Bacuna and Comenencia. And it was the latter who took his opportunity and scored Curaçao’s first-ever World Cup goal in the 21st minute. 

Queue wild celebrations on the pitch and in the stands. The closed stadium in Houston added to the electric atmosphere, and the 6,000 Curaçao faithful let their voices be known. You have to imagine that many of the ‘neutrals’ in the crowd were also supporting the ultimate underdogs as well. 

After the first ‘hydration break’ or, if we’re being honest, TV advert break, Julian Nagelsmann gave his players a stern talking to, and it worked. Germany picked up the tempo after conceding and got themselves back in front thanks to Borussia Dortmund’s Nico Schlotterbeck. 

The central defender had been a threat from corner kicks all day, so it was no surprise to see him score from a set piece. Nathaniel Brown’s corner found Schlotterbeck, who made no mistake to give Germany the lead again. 

Germany finally got a good hold of the game in stoppage time when Felix Nmecha was fouled inside the box. Havertz took the spot-kick and coolly slotted it away for 3-1. 

The second half started in familiar fashion with Musiala neatly putting the ball into the far corner after a lovely pass from Kimmich. 

From there, it was cruise control from Germany. With twenty minutes to go, Nathaniel Brown scored his first goal for Germany on his sixth gap. The Frankfurt man has been heavily linked with a move to Bayern. Maybe Frankfurt can add a few more million to the price tag?… 

Substitute Deniz Undav then got in on the action with a debut goal of his own. A comfortable tap-in after a free-flowing Germany move. 

Kai Havertz then scored his brace with minutes to spare with a delicious chip, having been played through from Nmecha. 

Having suffered an early scare, Germany played to their full potential an ensure that they got off to the best start possible. This was also Germany’s first opening day World Cup win since 2014. Up next, the Ivory Coast on Saturday. 

GGFN | Jamie Allen