When Germany made mincemeat of Curacao at the beginning of the World Cup, scoring seven goals, there was rejoicing amongst most but among a few, very few, there was a feeling of uneasiness.
One should never toy with a small team, or humiliate a newcomer, remarked Kamal Patwary, football lover and a former player for Kosaituli.
In fact, one should never insult or destroy an opponent, he remarked alluding to the German annihilation of Brazil in the 2014 World Cup.
“In football, there’s something far more important than just winning, it’s about respecting your opponent and then refraining from pulverising the other side when it’s a day going against them.”
Win by all means, says this veteran football lover, and a die-hard German team supporter, adding: “But never go beyond four goals.”
But in an era when football has become more than just a game and a battle where strategies fair and unfair are adopted with impunity, should a team harbour such values?
It may sound incongruous with the modern day ‘take no prisoner’ approach to the game but sportsmanship is still alive, although languishing, but alive, reminded Rahim Bhai, once an Agrani Bank midfielder and later, a coach.
So, what went wrong with the Prussian Precision after qualifying for the round of 32?
Germany going out against Paraguay is a shock to the footballing narrative, as many football fans would say.
Those who saw the match know that Germany played well, even scored twice, both headers, but the second one was disallowed because VAR review showed a German player pushing the Paraguayan keeper, Orlando Gill, during the corner.
As a result, the latter fell to the ground for a second before getting up.
Now, as FIFA rules state categorically, there cannot be any touching or pushing of the keeper and that’s where the goal was cancelled out and a foul given.
Then came Paraguayan keeper’s spectacular saves as if he was overtaken by some supernatural force.
Once legendary Paraguay keeper from 2002, Jose Chilavert, witnessed another keeper do the nation proud by making superb blocks.
Speaking objectively, if there’s another match between the two sides, Germany would win by a three-goal margin but, at the World Cup 2026, as records stand, Germany will be going home, Paraguay moving to the round of sixteen.
Looking back at Germany, after winning the World Cup in 2014, the team seems to have slipped quite a bit.
Both in 2018 and 2022, they were eliminated in the first round.
Taking that miserable result into account, this year, they moved to the knock-out, but before that, at the group stage, Germany was also humbled by Ecuador.
Another jolt!
There is a sizeable German fan base in Bangladesh, especially among the mature age bracket, who have seen the golden age of German football in the 80s, when Germany played three straight World Cup finals – 1982, 1986 and 1990.
They lost the first two to Italy and Argentina respectively, then finally, lifted the trophy in 1990.
As a Germany fan, it’s hard to digest the loss of a side which won the World Cup four times, 1954, 1974, 1990 and 2014, lamented Shamsu Ahmed, a former footballer of 80s Bangladeshi first division club Victoria Sporting.
His contemporary, Fatma Babu, who played for Shadharon Bima, also voiced his surprise, saying: “in the 80s, when people spoke about World Cup finals, the name Germany automatically came up.”
And we almost never heard Germany losing in penalties, added Rahim Bhai.
Germany losing in penalties is a rarity indeed because England legend and highest scorer at the 1986 World Cup, Gary Lineker, is believed to have said once: “Football is a simple game; twenty-two men chase a ball for 90 minutes and at the end, the Germans always win,” after losing to Germany in the 1990 World Cup semi-finals.
Oh well, that’s football in 2026, when no team is a small one, and no side playing at the World Cup is willing to lose before giving their best.
At any knock-out stage match, there’s the luck factor, the invisible force or, the blessing from Olympus.
Let’s just admit, the stars were not in favour of Germany.
