Germany eased into their World Cup campaign in Brazil and showed why they are the favorites in Group G’s “group of death” by stomping Portugal into the ground. They’ll need a similar performance against Ghana, who were stunned by the United States and will have to go for it on Saturday.
World Cup Odds: Germany -345, Ghana +930, Draw +470
Why Ghana Can Win
Ghana had their chances in a 2-1 loss to the Americans, and they have to concentrate more defensively as they gave up a goal 30 seconds into the match before many had gotten to their seats, and then there was the late set piece that gave the United States all three points. Ghana can also win if they’re better at shooting as they managed to get just eight of their 21 shots on target. Germany isn’t the best defensive team in the world, so Ghana should get their chances and they have a striker in captain Asamoah Gyan that can hurt you. That said, he has to be better for this massive match for his country.
Ghana also has to beware of their attacking instincts because if they are not, Germany will absolutely roll right over them. It is all good to go at them, but they can’t chase shadows in midfield and get dragged out of position, because while it would be an entertaining match, Ghana won’t win that match. It’ll be intriguing to see how much they’re willing to go forward in a match where they basically have to.
Why Germany Can Win
Germany was dominant in their 4-0 crushing of Ghana, and even though all the discussion was over Pepe’s red card, the Germans were up 2-0 by the point and never looked like losing. Thomas Muller’s hat trick gave him eight World Cup goals at age 24, more than halfway to the Brazilian Ronaldo’s record of 15, and he got plenty of help from Mesut Ozil and Mario Gotze, who should have had at least one goal himself. The three-man midfield of captain Philip Lahm, Toni Kroos and Sami Khedira were great; does Bastian Schweinsteiger sit on the bench again?
While Germany earned the clean sheet and Mats Hummels scored, the defense looked shaky early in the match and they’ve shown they can have issues leading up to the World Cup. They’ll have to be careful against a Ghana team that will be pushing forward every chance they get.
Outlook
These two have met twice with Germany winning both matches, a 6-1 thrashing in 1993 and a 1-0 victory at the group stage of the 2010 World Cup when Ozil scored on the hour to give his team three points. Ghana has a tough situation because they need to win this match to have a chance going into their finale against Portugal, but if they are stretched at the back, Germany will hurt them badly. This should be a fun game to watch, but it won’t end well for the Africans.
Pick: Germany
