Julian Brandt started on the bench as in the previous two group matches against Mexico (0-1) and Sweden (2-1). The Werkself pro came on late in both games where he livened up Germany's play and hit the woodwork twice. This time, Brandt came off the subs bench on 78 minutes but was unable to make a decisive contribution.
"Of course, we are all hugely disappointed. We'll have to make sure we deal with the situation. Congratulations to South Korea on their win and to Sweden and Mexico on going through to the Round of 16. We didn't deserve to go through. The team lacked fluency and there was no combination play and security," was the assessment of Germany coach Joachim Löw.
Mats Hummels did not mince his words after the final whistle: "It's a really, really, really disappointing night for us and German football in general. We didn't get the ball in the back of the net today although we had our chances. The fact we missed those chances was the root of our downfall. I should have made it 1-0 on 86 minutes. We were too hectic from 65 minutes on and we lost our structure. We have a number of points to deal with when we meet up again. Our last convincing performance was in the autumn of 2017. That's quite a long time ago."
In a repeat of the first two matches, Germany found it extremely difficult to make progress against South Korea. With high temperatures in Kazan there was a lack of tempo in Germany's play. The better chances fell to the South Koreans with Heung-Min Son twice almost putting his team ahead twice. Manuel Neuer failed to hold on to a free kick and had to punch the ball away just as Son, who made 87 appearances for the Werkself from 2013 to 2015, was about to shoot. Son also put a shot just wide of Neuer's goal on 25 minutes. The best chance for Germany fell to Hummels who saw his shot on 40 minutes saved by the South Korean keeper Jo.
Germany were unable to dominate proceedings in the second 45 either. Joachim Löw's team succeeded in creating chances for Goretzka, Werner, Gomez and Hummels - but nothing went right on the afternoon. In contrast, the South Koreans twice struck clinically in added time.
"Everyone's down and deeply disappointed in the dressing room," said team manager Oliver Bierhoff after the game. "We hoped to see a reaction after the 2-1 win against Sweden but it wasn't enough in the end." As with Italy and Spain before, this is third time in succession the reigning World Cup winners have had to pack their bags after the group phase.
The team departs for Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Monday for the Bayer 04 Brazil Tour 2025 from July 14-24. The preseason journey marks a change from recent training camps in the Austrian Alps and Black Forest and we caught up with CEO Fernando Carro to ask him about this summer's visit to Brazil.
Show moreMalik Tillman and the USA could not quite achieve the hoped-for big win in their own country. Last Monday’s final in the CONCACAF Gold Cup in Houston ended up in a 2-1 defeat for the hosts against Mexico. But the Bayer 04 new signing can be very happy with the course of the tournament and his own performances. Tillman was in the starting line-up for all six games. That concluded an impressive season for him after winning the Eredivisie title in the Netherlands with PSV Eindhoven. Bayer04.de profiles the 23-year-old new signing.
Show moreBayer 04 Leverkusen have signed the USA international Malik Tillman. The 23-year-old attacking midfielder joins the Werkself from Dutch champions PSV Eindhoven. Tillman, with German roots and born in Nuremberg, has a contract at Leverkusen to 30 June 2030. He scored 16 goals and provided five assists in 34 games for PSV last season. Three of those goals and two assists were in six matches in the UEFA Champions League.
Show moreThe second friendly and the first goal for the Bayer 04 Women: The Werkself just missed out on their first win in the preseason away to top-flight Dutch side PEC Zwolle. The team led by coach Roberto Pätzold drew 1-1 on Friday afternoon in Wezep. As with the friendly against TSG Hoffenheim (0-2) a number of first-team players were absent. The coach once again shared out time on the pitch for the 20-player squad. The goal of the match was scored by summer signing Vanessa Fudalla (67').
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