Rio de Janeiro, July 3:
Under-fire Germany face rejuvenated France in tomorrow’s World Cup quarter-final at Rio de Janeiro’s iconic Maracana stadium in a mouth-watering clash of two European powerhouses.
This represents an acid test for Germany coach Joachim Loew with his side heavily criticised for below-par performances in this edition.
A place in Tuesday’s semi-final against either Brazil or Colombia in Belo Horizonte is at stake.
“Didier Deschamps has turned France around since 2010 and we’re looking forward to another classic,” said Loew who took charge after the 2006 World Cup.
Their 4-0 hammering of Portugal in their opening group match confirmed their status amongst the world’s elite, but a series of unimpressive performances have seen Loew’s Germans receive heavy criticism.
Having been held to a 2-2 draw by Ghana, then grinding out a 1-0 win over the USA in their final group match, poor finishing saw Germany labour to a 2-1 extra-time win over Algeria in Monday’s last 16 clash.(Agencies)
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