It's only fitting that one of the best World Cups in history will end with a clash between two giants, as Germany and Argentina will face off in the 2014 final in Rio de Janeiro.The Germans emerged as a World Cup favorite before play began and justified that by winning the "group of death."
They were tested in extra time against Algeria in the knockout stage but are most recently coming off an emphatic 7-1 drubbing of Brazil.Lionel Messi leads his Argentine side fresh off an emotional win on penalty kicks against the Netherlands in the semifinal. They were held scoreless for 120 minutes, but two saves from Argentina goalkeeper Sergio Romero in the shootout propelled them to face Germany.
Germany has three of the seven best attacking games at the World Cup. The secret is simply that it plays possession soccer. No team in the World Cup has completed more passes than Germany. Only Spain, the inventors of tiki-taka, played more passes on a per-minute basis. The German style, much like the Spanish, focuses on short passing to keep possession. It eschews crosses from wide areas, preferring to pass the ball through the center of the defense to create chances.
In contrast to Germany, Argentina has two of the seven best defensive performances in this tournament. More impressive still, Argentina’s best games have come in its quarterfinal and semifinal matches. With everything on the line and facing elite opponents, Argentina has prevented superstars like Arjen Robben and Eden Hazard from creating chances over 210 minutes of soccer.
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