After a spirited display that yielded a goal, Germany put World Cup debutants Curacao to the sword with a 7-1 victory at the FIFA World Cup on Sunday.
The German machines had gone ahead in the 6th minute via Felix Nmecha’s goal but saw a spirited fightback from the newcomers, who equalised through Livano Comenencia in the 21st minute to the delight of supporters in the stadium.
The debutants had their tails up and matched Germany in all areas of the field, though forming a low block to ward them off for the most part before the Europeans doubled their lead in the 38th minute through Nico Schlotterbeck.
Arsenal’s Kai Havertz extended their lead via a penalty in the 5th minute of added time to show their supremacy.
From there on, it was a walk in the park for the Germans, who made it four through Nathaniel Brown in the 68th minute, Deniz Undav in the 78th minute, and Havertz again in the 88th minute to complete a 7-1 drubbing.
It was the first time since 2014, when Germany won the tournament, that they had won their opening World Cup game.
Curacao were cheered on by rousing fans covered in blue, and even in defeat, the smallest-ever nation to qualify for the World Cup had a moment of history to enjoy.
(The Whistler)
