Greatest World Cup matches: West Germany-Argentina 1990

The end of the 1980s and early 90’s were a time of great changes in the world as well as in the world of football. The 1980s had seen violence around the game grow, culminating in the specter of hooliganism and banning of English teams to play in Europe. Football had become a catalyst for the ugliest sides of European nationalism. On the pitch football had growm much more defensive and accepting of unfair play and horrible tackles.
Sadly, the World Cup of 1990 assembled all of these forces: “Italia 90 condensed the new social forces remaking European football: saturation media coverage, high commercials takes and the repackaged spectacular. It was perhaps the most gruelling, defensive and mean-minded tournament yet staged.”
The atmosphere at the World Cup in Italy was from the start hateful and very nationalistic, and the teams participating living off this like vultures. Foul play was ignored or even glorified in the case of Cameroon, Argentina or Italy, as long as victory was achieved.
On the pitch fans saw the World Cup with the lowest goal-scoring average ever; most teams, notably Argentina, Italy and Ireland played immensely defensive football. There was only one match where both teams scored more than one goal, with most penalty kick decisions and a record in the number of red cards.

It was the worst World Cup ever played, and the final was no exception: it is widely regarded as the worst final ever played as West Germany defeated Argentina 1-0 to win their third world title in a repeat of the 1986 final, when Argentina had won.
It was thus time for revenge, and the entire atmosphere around the final was hugely hateful and negative. Argentina had during the entire tournament played very defensively and negative football, reaching the final on the moments of glory of Diego Maradona and Claudio Cannigia, as well as spectacular goalkeeping by Sergio Goycoechea. Diego Maradona, who had become a controversial superstar in Italy while playing for Napoli, was particularly the target of a European media and fans who saw little tolerance in a star from a Third World country who was very provocative and immersed in scandals, but yet brought glory to every little team he played for, like the ever-discriminated city of Naples in southern Italy.
Maradona was hated in Europe, and this World Cup was Europe’s reckoning in the country where Maradona had shined for Napoli.
Argentina only added to the hate by playing destructive football, although their sensational defeat to Cameroon in the opening match had been as much due to harsh play by the Africans. In any case, Argentina made it through to the last-16 barely, and meeting Brazil they won 1-0 as sensationally as they had lost to Cameroon in a match where Brazil had all the chances in the world. In the quarterfinal Argentina defeated the splendid Yugoslav side (playing their last World Cup as a unified country) after penalty kicks where Sergio Goycoechea had saved two penalties. In the semifinal the Argentineans had again sensationally defeated the home team of Italy in Naples after penalty kicks, and were in spite of their unpopularity, destructive play and poor playing ready to defend their World Cup title in Rome.

West Germany was also playing its last World Cup: in November 1989 the Berlin wall had fallen, and soon the two Germanies would unite to form one Germany. Although Germany still awakened much fear in Europe and few people particularly supported them, there was no doubt that they had been the best team of the tournament.
In 1982 and 1986 the German national side had been one of the least popular sides, but making two World Cup finals. In 1990, as most other great teams were either destructive or inefficient, the Germans emerged as an outstanding side, captained by one of the best players of all time, the all-round Inter and former Bayern Munich star Lothar Matthäus, the West Germans had surely emerged as the (for many grumbling) stars of the tournament.
The Germans started the tournament by destroying Yugoslavia and the United Arab Emirated 4-1 and 5-1 respectively, and a 1-1 with Colombia was enough for them to win the group. In the last-16 the Germans defeated the defending European champions of the Netherlands 2-1 in a dramatic match, and in the quarterfinals Czechoslovakia (also playing their last World Cup as a united country) were defeated 1-0 on a Lothar Matthäus penalty goal.
In the semifinal the West Germans faced their eternal English rivals in what for the English was the best World Cup since 1966. In a tense match that ended 1-1, West Germany won after extra time, and although they were not playing splendid football, they were certainly the favourites in the final against Argentina.
To illustrate the hateful atmosphere of the tournament, thousands of fans disrespectfully booed through the Argentinean national anthem before the match. The Argentineans (without some of their best players, notably Claudio Cannigia who was banned for the final) saw their only chance in winning by playing destructively, while the German team was unable or not good enough to break through the defense, as well as being afraid of making mistakes the Argentineans were so good at taking advantage of.

It was a horrible final, and in spite of the Germans having more possession, nothing happened. First half ended 0-0, and there were hardly any chances in the second half either.
Halfway through the second half the Independiente defender Pedro Monzón, who had come on as a substitute for Oscar Ruggeri, received a red card by the Mexican referee Eduardo Codesal for a challenge on Jurgen Klinsmann.
It was the first time a player was sent off in a World Cup final, further underlining the negativity of this tournament.
Down to ten men Argentina continued defending without the Germans getting any clear chances. It was obvious that the South Americans were hoping to win like they had done in the previous two matches, by penalty kicks, counting on their outstanding goalkeeper. But only five minutes before the end Eduardo Codesal awarded the Germans a very friendly penalty kicks on a challenge on the splendid Roma striker Rudi Völler. The defender from Inter, Andreas Brehme, who had previously scored on free kicks against the Netherlands and England, scored on a well-shot penalty, although Goycoechea had seen its direction.
The penalty was enough to make West Germany world champion, but before the match another Argentinean, Cremonese’s Gustavo Dezotti was harshly sent off as the second player ever to receive this dubious honour in a World Cup final.
There was enormous criticism of the Mexican referee in Argentina in particular, as his decisions clearly favoured the Germans. That said, as a whole, West Germany was without a doubt the best team of the tournament and the right world champions, although it is overshadowed by the poor tournament and absolutely horrible final.
The German coach Franz Beckenbauer, who had captained the German winning side in 1974, became the second person ever to win the World Cup as both as a coach and a player (the first being Mario Zagallo for Brazil in 1958 and 1970).

In spite of all this, any football fan was only looking forward to improvement of the game that had sunk to its lowest in Italy. The 1994 World Cup in the USA was fortunately a rebirth of football both in the sense of the fans (who in USA showed a new friendly side) and in the way of the game, as new teams (some of the great ones as England and France did not qualify), new rules and new tendencies greatly promoted the renewal of football.
The 1990 final is one of the greatest matches of all time, but not for positive reasons.

Match Stats:

• 8th July, 1990, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
• Attendance: 73,603
• Referee: Eduardo Codesal (Mexico)

West Germany-Argentina 1-0
Goals: 1-0 Brehme (85) (pen)

Teams:
West Germany: Illgner, Brehme, Kohler, Augenthaler, Buchwald, Berthold (Reuter), Haessler, Littbarski, Matthaus, Klinsmann, Voller
Argentina: Goycoechea, Ruggeri (Monzón), Simon, Lorenzo, Serrizuela, Sensini, Burruchaga (Calderon), Basualdo, Troglio, Dezotti, Maradona

Greatest World Cup matches: West Germany-England (1990)

Footballing encounters between these two European nations have always been immersed in a strong rivalry, and from the English side, in a WWII rhetoric. In spite of winning the 1966 World Cup final, English teams seem to have had a minority complex against the Germans, and this particular semi-final was a case in point, as both teams were hunting World Cup success, albeit from two very different angles!
Modern football was born in England, but besides the triumph in the 1966, the team has grossly underperformed. In the late 1970s and first half of the 1980s, England arguably had the best clubs in Europe, with Liverpool, Notthingham Forest and Aston Villa taking six European Champions Cup titles in a row. However, the national team was under-performing, and the horrible violence of English hooligans was destroying the game. When, in the European Cup final in 1985 at Heysel, Liverpool fans rioting caused the death of 39 fans, English teams were banned from playing in Europe, effectively putting an end to English dominance at the club level. But at the national team level, the second half of the 1980s saw a resurgence in the English national team: only a mighty Maradona managed to stop them at the 1986 world cup quarter-finals, and although England had not progressed from the first round of the 1988 European Championships, there was careful optimism about the team for the 1990 World Cup in Italy.
West Germany was throughout the 1980s perhaps the most powerful European footballing nation: winners of the 1980 European Championships, and semifinalist in 1988, while the country had made it to the World Cup final in 1982 and 1986. The Germans had nevertheless been very unpopular, playing a particularly cynical style of football. But in Italy 1990 the cynical defensive football prevailed, while the Germans began playing more offensive attacking football, but without losing their organisation and discipline. In their first two matches West Germany had trashed Yugoslavia and the United Arab Emirates 4-1 and 5-1 respectively, and 1-1 against Colombia in their last group match had been enough to give them the group victory. In the last-16 West Germany had played their Dutch arch-rivals, and had gotten revenge for their defeat in the 1988 European championship by winning 2-1 in an intense match.
Czechoslovakia had been defeated 1-0 in the quarter-final on a penalty goal by their captain Lothar Matthäus. The Inter midfielder was playing his third World Cup with Germany, and was proving the best player of the tournament as West Germany prepared to face England in the semi-final.
England had been steadily improving during the tournament, in spite of not looking that strong in the first round group, where England started against two teams that had defeated them two years before, at the 1988 Euro, Ireland and the Netherlands, as well as the strong but underestimated north Africans from Egypt. In the first two matches, against the European side, England managed a 1-1 with Ireland and a 0-0 with the Dutch, and a narrow 1-0 victory in the last match against the excellent Egyptians gave England the first spot in the group. The English had not played well and had not scored many goals, and in the last-16 it took 119 minutes before David Platt scored the winner for England against Belgium.
In the quarter-final England faced Cameroon, who were the sensation of the tournament. Led by the ageing Roger Milla Cameroon went ahead 2-1 and seemed on the verge of a World Cup semifinal when the Tottenham striker and top goalscorer from the 1986 World Cup, Gary Lineker scored on two penalties to give England a spot in the semifinal against the European arch-rivals of West Germany, in what would become one of the most memorable encounters ever between the two footballing giants, and surely one of the most exciting encounters in an otherwise boring and defensive world cup.
England’s team was one of the most talented English sides in a generation with players such as the legendary goalkeeper Peter Shilton, the Nottingham Forest captain Stuart Pearce, Chris Waddle from Olympique Marseille, Liverpool’s Peter Beardsley, the controversial Tottenham player Paul Gascoigne and the also Tottenham striker and top-scorer from the 1986 World Cup, Gary Lineker. The English were determined that this was their moment to make it to the World Cup final for the second time ever, and the match would indeed be one of the most legendary matches in the history of English football.
It all started well for England, for was the better team in the first half, with good chances to both Paul Gascoigne and Chris Waddle. However, the score was 0-0 at half-time. Fifteen minuted into the second half the Germans got a free kick just outside the English area. The strong Inter defender Andreas Brehme took the free kick that got deflected by Paul Parker in the defensive wall and in a high curve looped over Peter Shilton, who looked rather faulty at the goal.
The Germans were ahead, and England pressed on. All of England was surely praying for a goal when, with ten minutes remaining, Paul Parker kicks the ball with little direction into the German area, where three German defenders looked confused as the ball fell down; Klaus Augethaler touched it, but not controlling it, the ball went to Gary Lineker who immediately thanked the defender and scored resolutely.
With this goal, the game had to go into a thrilling extra time. Both teams were looking for the victory, and both come close by hitting the post. At the same time, Paul Gascoigne broke down in tears after receiving a yellow card that effectively would keep him out of the final if England made it. A horrible mistake by the German defence that put the English back into the game.
The match had to be decided by penalties. Both teams scored on their first three shots, but on England’s fourth shot, after Karlheinz Riedle had equalized to 3-3 for West Germany, the German goalkeeper Bodo Illgner managed to save the shot from the Nottingham Forest captain Stuart Pearce. As Olaf Thon scored on West Germany’s next kick, Chris Waddle was forced to score to keep England in the game. But his nerves didn’t hold, as he shot the ball over the bar, giving Germany the victory amid English tears.
West Germany became world champions by defeating Argentina in the final. They have not been champions since, while England has yet not come as close to a world cup final as they were then. This match went into history as one of the great matches between the two European arch-rivals.
Gary Lineker has later been quoted for saying that “football is a game of eleven against eleven, and Germany always wins.”

Match Stats:

• 4th July 1990, Stadio delle Alpi, Turin
• Attendance: 62,630
• Referee: José Roberto Wright (Brazil)

West Germany-England 1-1 (after extra time)
Goals: 1-0 Brehme (60), 1-1 Lineker (80)

Penalty Kicks:
West Germany-England 4-3
0-1 Lineker
1-1 Brehme
1-2 Beardsley
2-2 Matthäus
2-3 Platt
3-3 Riedle
Pearce missed for England
4-3 Thon
Waddle missed for England

Teams:
West Germany: Illgner; Brehme, Kohler, Augenthaler, Buchwald, Haessler (Reuter), Völler (Riedle), Matthäus, Berthold, Klinsmann, Thon
England: Shilton; Pearce, Walker, Butcher (Steven), Waddle, Beardsley, Lineker, Parker, Wright, Platt, Gascoigne