Muller, now 33, has amassed a store of individual awards at football’s most significant competition 10 World Cup pretensions, one Stylish youthful Player award, one Golden Boot award, one tableware charge award, and a place in the 2014 World Cup All-Star XI.
That, and an early return home from the 2018 World Cup in Russia could goad the Germans to want to make a big impact in Qatar. But pundits have advised against dismissing Japan, a platoon that tends to exceed prospects on the global stage. They’re the loftiest-ranked Asian platoon at the event, and numerous of the youths in their team are contending for public glory and aiming to put on a show for the gift scouts.
Group: E – Germany vs Japan
Khalifa International Stadium
Wednesday, November 23 at 7 pm local time
FIFA Ranking: Germany (11), Japan (24)
Head-to-Head Record: Four Meetings– two draws and two wins for Germany
Last Five Matches:
Japan: W L W D L
Germany: D W L D W
On Wednesday, in front of,000 suckers at the Khalifa International Stadium, bushwhackers Daichi Kamada, Kaoru Mitoma, and Takumi Minamino of Japan will square up to Germany’s Ilkay Gundogan, Joshua Kimmich, and Jamal Musiala in the battle for midfield dominance.
Kamada has solid experience in German football, plying his trade at Eintracht Frankfurt, by playing with industry and creativity in the hole behind the striker. Others who also play in the Bundesliga include Stuttgart’s Wataru Endo and Ritsu Doan – aka “the Japanese Messi”, whose left foot has put a shot past one of the world’s best goalkeepers in Manuel Neuer while playing with Freiburg.
Germany has won the World Cup four times – and they still have Thomas Muller, a star of the 2010 and 2014 events.