Day 5: There’s no need to teach an old dog new tricks

Goals galore cap off the best day of the World Cup so far

Germany 6 - Morocco 0

Germany headed into this World Cup in concerning form, having lost 3-2 to Zambia and only narrowly beaten Vietnam 2-1. If there were any concerns, this comprehensive win over Morocco would have been a tonic, with the WAFCON runners up on paper being about the same level as the teams Germany had struggled against in their warm up matches.

Like seemingly everyone else at this World Cup, Germany have been forced to make adjustments as a result of injuries, but also like everyone else, their manager’s hand has not been forced in terms of who she has picked. The choice to use Svenja Huth at right-back ahead of someone like Sophia Kleinherne is a prime example of this.

As Huth is nominally an attacking player, her usage seems to be based on allowing for a significant number of rotations in build-up for Germany. That has only been exacerbated by Lena Oberdorf’s injury with Sara Däbritz and Melanie Leupolz being used as a double pivot - although again given the more like for like switches of Lena Lattwein or Sjoeke Nüsken, this again is a choice. 

At points, Germany would just pivot into a back three with Huth pushing up, like we have seen a number of teams do in build-up this World Cup. But also, occasionally, Sara Däbritz would drop in as a centre-back or right-back. Jule Brand would tuck in as an 8 to facilitate this with Huth again moving up the pitch. All of these rotations gave the Germans considerable flexibility and left Huth not looking much like a right-back at all.

Ironically in the end, it was less the clever interchange at the back and more Alex Popp’s head that helped Germany put up such a comprehensive score. They scored six of their seven shots on target; a masterclass in attacking efficiency or potentially luck?

The return of Lena Oberdorf might make this build-up less fluid, although obviously Oberdorf is more than equipped to drop in at centre-back. Regardless, these rotations seem set in Voss-Tecklenberg’s game plan. The gaps they form then will be a concern. Morocco were not short on counter-attacking opportunities in this game, even if the linesman’s flag spared some German blushes. Do Germany have time to play this more complicated style without being exposed? There is only one way to find out.

Brazil 4 - Panama 0

Germany might have been the team to really start banging in the goals, but Brazil added the flair. The Canarinhas have become the hipster’s pick for World Cup glory and justifiably so after their performance against Panama. Pia Sundhage’s 4-4-2 meant that despite Panama’s vain attempts to defend central areas, there was plenty of room out wide to put crosses in. 

Perhaps Panama did not expect that all 5’4” of Ary Borges would be getting her head to those crosses. Borges was the stand out player for Brazil, scoring a hat-trick on her World Cup debut with her assist for the third goal arguably being the best of the lot. Despite being on a hat-trick, Borges simply backheeled the ball to Beatriz Zaneratto behind her to finish off. It was the end of a delightful move which understandably bamboozled the Panamanians.

The question for Brazil will be whether they can bring this free-flowing attacking stlye, which used interior overloads and an overlapping fullback in Tamires against higher-quality teams. Recently, they have been happy to sit back against teams like England, limiting their opportunities to play in a more creative and fluid way. This delightful win over Panama - easily the most enjoyable and entertaining so far- showed the freedom inherent in this approach. Capturing that in their next game against France, who at this point will need to win, could mean it is more than just hipsters seeing Brazil as potential favourites.

Italy 1 - Argentina 0

If Milena Bertolini was hoping this opening group game at the World Cup would usher in her new and refreshed Italian squad, she must have clenched her fists in frustration when Cristiana Girelli eventually headed in Italy’s winner.

Girelli has been a mainstay of Italy’s squad with over 100 caps for the national team but started this group stage game on the bench. The backdrop to all this includes former captain Sara Gama being left at home whilst 16 year old Giuliana Dragoni was named in the starting line up. 

As it was, it probably did not matter who exactly Bertolini played because none of them seemed to have a strong idea of what they were supposed to be doing. Argentina’s high press was very unsettling early on and both teams became incredibly physical incredibly quickly. Some nervy moments from Italian goalkeeper Francesca Durante only added to the feeling that Argentina could get something out of this.

In the second half, Italy were able to wrestle back some more control of the ball, but they still seemed to predominantly be relying on Barbra Bonansea - another of the older set - playing hero ball. That is until Girelli entered the fray with an excellent header from Lisa Boattin’s cross to take the three points. Given the group they are in, Italy will fancy that that gives them a good chance to make the knockout stages. But the long term future of this team looks no more certain than it did before.