BERLIN: Joachim Low begins his final World Cup Qualification campaign with Germany on Thursday (today) when the four-time champions welcome Iceland to the MSV-Arena in Group J.
Both teams failed to progress past the group stage of the 2018 World Cup, and Die Mannschaft in particular will be desperate to improve on that finish under new leadership.
Low’s first World Cup in 2010 saw Germany take the bronze medal before Mario Gotze wrote his name into the history books by scoring the winner against Argentina in the final four years later, although Russia 2018 was nothing short of a calamitous affair for the then-defending champions.
Indeed, Germany only won one of their three group stage matches and finished rock bottom as Sweden and Mexico progressed, and while Die Mannschaft have endured a spate of positive results since that doomed tournament, their most recent fixture arguably overshadowed their previously unbeaten record in 2020.
Low oversaw two victories and three draws from his side’s first five Nations League encounters, but they simply capitulated against Spain as they fell to a crushing 6-0 defeat in League A Group 4 - a result which saw La Roja progress at the expense of their European counterparts - and that game also marked the first time in 89 years that Germany lost by a six-goal margin.
Despite that humiliation, Low’s side can take solace from the fact that only one of their last 15 matches on home soil has ended in defeat, and they secured back-to-back victories over the Czech Republic and Ukraine on familiar territory last autumn, so this week’s hosts must surely take the lessons they learned in their drubbing against Spain and use them for good here.
The game marks the fifth meeting between Germany and Iceland since their first battle in 1960.
Meanwhile, Spain will hope to kick off their bid to qualify for the World Cup in perfect fashion when they battle with Greece at the Nuevo Los Carmenes in Group B.
The hosts are aiming to improve on their last-16 finish in Russia 2018, whereas Greece are bidding to return to the world stage after missing out three years ago.
Spain will struggle to top their most recent result for a long time, as Luis Enrique’s side hit Germany for six in the Nations League back in November on their way to a first-placed finish in League A Group 4, with Manchester City’s Ferran Torres bagging an exceptional hat-trick on the night.
Greece have not exactly enjoyed a spate of success since their historic Euro 2004 triumph, and John van ‘t Schip’s side failed to qualify for the continental championships for the second time in a row after winning just four of their 10 qualification matches in 2019.
Italy get their qualification campaign underway as the Azzurri face Northern Ireland at Parma’s Stadio Ennio Tardini.
The opening match of Group C for both sides could set the tone for their hopes of making it to the first end-of-year World Cup in the competition’s long and illustrious history.
For the opening three matches in qualification for Qatar 2022, coach Roberto Mancini has called up a substantial 38-man squad, featuring several new faces who could be set to shine at the European Championship finals this summer.