There was no attempt to sugar-coat it. Germany retained their eloquence after elimination but it required words they rarely need. "Sorry," said Mats Hummels. The sight of Germany propping up a pool in the World Cup requires different language. It has brought words not normally associated with Die Mannschaft. “Sorry,” said Mats Hummels. “Pathetic,” said Manuel Neuer. “Disappointment,” said manager Joachim Low.
He predicted public uproar in Germany. It was a rare occasion in the past two weeks when Low has been right. The newspaper Bild branded it "the biggest disgrace in German World Cup history". Low said Germany had lost "everything we have built". The aura of invincibility has been dented, the notion of relentless, remorseless German progress into the latter stages of every tournament destroyed in their worst World Cup for 80 years. The side who only trailed for eight minutes in Brazil only led for a handful of injury-time seconds in Russia.
Low lost his impeccable record of reaching at least the semi-finals in every tournament. During his long reign, other managerial greats – Marcello Lippi, Fabio Capello, Vicente del Bosque, Luiz Felipe Scolari – have been humiliated. It transpired that he is not immune to ignominy.
The inquest begins with a manager who hinted at resignation. In May, Low signed an extended contract until 2022. Before Wednesday's defeat to South Korea, the German FA had pledged their support, though it is easier to say that when there is the assumption of victory.
WATCH: German fans in tears following shock World Cup exit
Certainly, Low got much wrong. The dissent extended to his first captain. "Leadership? Personality? Mentality?" asked Michael Ballack on Twitter. Germany lacked all. There were problems in attack, midfield, defence and, eventually, in goal. The assumption was that Germany would display their usual ability to peak in tournaments. The reality is the malaise began before Russia. They have only two unconvincing wins in nine games and no clean sheet since November. The warnings went unheeded.
A common theme among the defending champions who have crashed out at the first hurdle – France in 2002, Italy in 2010 and Spain in 2014 – has been an understandable loyalty to champion players who proved past it. Low displayed it. This was a tournament too far for the admirable, slowing Sami Khedira. Collectively, Germany looked off the pace. It made the omission of the electric Leroy Sane all the more of an error, even if Julian Brandt, the man preferred, was actually one of Germany's better players.
Crucially, Sane was in form. Where Low merits some sympathy is that international managers can be hostages to fortune. Sometimes they get players at their peaks. Germany had too many who had injury-hit seasons or who were out of form. Neuer had not played club football since September. Bayern Munich’s seeming suspicions that Jerome Boateng is in decline looked justified. Mesut Ozil was the Arsenal Ozil. The goalless Thomas Muller was a shadow of his prolific former self. Tactically, as Hummels admitted, they were cut open far too easily by the sharper Mexicans. “Even if we had made it in the last 16, everyone would have liked to play against us,” said an honest Neuer.
INTERACTIVE: World Cup wall chart
Low took responsibility in a frank appraisal, and his revolving-door selection policy suggested he was guessing after running out of ideas, but underperforming players are also culpable. And yet this is not 2000, when the worst German group in living memory failed wretchedly in the European Championship, prompting Das Reboot, the investment in coaching that propelled their renaissance. Now they have plenty of players.
They won the 2017 Under-21 European Championship, finished second in the 2016 Olympics and, under Low, triumphed in last year’s Confederations Cup with a young, reserve team. Khedira and Boateng almost certainly will not be at the 2022 World Cup. Neuer, Ozil, Hummels and Muller may not either.
But there are opportunities for renewal. Niklas Sule should displace Boateng. Leon Goretzka and Julian Weigl could join Toni Kroos in midfield, or Joshua Kimmich could switch from right-back. Sane and Brandt offer the promise of potency on the wings. Timo Werner, despite an undistinguished tournament, is a striker of real talent. Each should have still-younger rivals snapping at his heels.
If Germany’s failure destroyed one of the safest assumptions in sport, it is still highly probable they will be back. But probably not with these players, and perhaps not with this manager after an era came to an abrupt end.
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Read more on World Cup 2018:
World Cup 2018: Day 15 updates - Germany out, England take on Belgium
Failure on an epic scale: Germany suffer ultimate Low with historic World Cup exit
Joachim Low will discuss Germany future 'calmly' but 'incredibly disappointed' by World Cup elimination
Extra Time podcast: Messi finally comes through as World Cup knockout stages take shape
WATCH: Messi sits out training as Argentina prepare for World Cup clash with France
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Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Kill%20
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UAE%20v%20West%20Indies
%3Cp%3EFirst%20ODI%20-%20Sunday%2C%20June%204%20%0D%3Cbr%3ESecond%20ODI%20-%20Tuesday%2C%20June%206%20%0D%3Cbr%3EThird%20ODI%20-%20Friday%2C%20June%209%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EMatches%20at%20Sharjah%20Cricket%20Stadium.%20All%20games%20start%20at%204.30pm%0D%3Cbr%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EUAE%20squad%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EMuhammad%20Waseem%20(captain)%2C%20Aayan%20Khan%2C%20Adithya%20Shetty%2C%20Ali%20Naseer%2C%20Ansh%20Tandon%2C%20Aryansh%20Sharma%2C%20Asif%20Khan%2C%20Basil%20Hameed%2C%20Ethan%20D%E2%80%99Souza%2C%20Fahad%20Nawaz%2C%20Jonathan%20Figy%2C%20Junaid%20Siddique%2C%20Karthik%20Meiyappan%2C%20Lovepreet%20Singh%2C%20Matiullah%2C%20Mohammed%20Faraazuddin%2C%20Muhammad%20Jawadullah%2C%20Rameez%20Shahzad%2C%20Rohan%20Mustafa%2C%20Sanchit%20Sharma%2C%20Vriitya%20Aravind%2C%20Zahoor%20Khan%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
RESULT
Liverpool 4 Southampton 0
Jota (2', 32')
Thiago (37')
Van Dijk (52')
Man of the match: Diogo Jota (Liverpool)
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMaly%20Tech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Mo%20Ibrahim%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%20International%20Financial%20Centre%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20FinTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunds%20raised%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%241.6%20million%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2015%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPre-seed%2C%20planning%20first%20seed%20round%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20GCC-based%20angel%20investors%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Malcolm & Marie
Directed by: Sam Levinson
Starring: John David Washington and Zendaya
Three stars
ALRAWABI%20SCHOOL%20FOR%20GIRLS
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Young women have more “financial grit”, but fall behind on investing
In an October survey of young adults aged 16 to 25, Charles Schwab found young women are more driven to reach financial independence than young men (67 per cent versus. 58 per cent). They are more likely to take on extra work to make ends meet and see more value than men in creating a plan to achieve their financial goals. Yet, despite all these good ‘first’ measures, they are investing and saving less than young men – falling early into the financial gender gap.
While the women surveyed report spending 36 per cent less than men, they have far less savings than men ($1,267 versus $2,000) – a nearly 60 per cent difference.
In addition, twice as many young men as women say they would invest spare cash, and almost twice as many young men as women report having investment accounts (though most young adults do not invest at all).
“Despite their good intentions, young women start to fall behind their male counterparts in savings and investing early on in life,” said Carrie Schwab-Pomerantz, senior vice president, Charles Schwab. “They start off showing a strong financial planning mindset, but there is still room for further education when it comes to managing their day-to-day finances.”
Ms Schwab-Pomerantz says parents should be conveying the same messages to boys and girls about money, but should tailor those conversations based on the individual and gender.
"Our study shows that while boys are spending more than girls, they also are saving more. Have open and honest conversations with your daughters about the wage and savings gap," she said. "Teach kids about the importance of investing – especially girls, who as we see in this study, aren’t investing as much. Part of being financially prepared is learning to make the most of your money, and that means investing early and consistently."
'Midnights'
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EArtist%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Taylor%20Swift%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ELabel%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Republic%20Records%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
MATCH INFO
Inter Milan 2 (Vecino 65', Barella 83')
Verona 1 (Verre 19' pen)
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year