Where to start on a night when Brazil were left Belo horizontal? Thomas Muller made it five goals for the tournament, Miroslav Klose became the all-time record World Cup goalscorer on 16, nudging Ronaldo aside, there was a brace each for Andre Schurrle and Toni Kroos, with Sami Khedira also scoring.
This game smashed all expectations. This was a record goals rout in a World Cup semi-final. Had Germany carried on at the rate they were scoring in the first half, they would have scored 15. Ridiculous scenes.
Muller is now hot on the heels of Colombia’s James Rodriguez for the Golden Boot, just one behind the Monaco star. Everything he and his team-mates touched turned to gold. Brazil’s crown was cast aside and they may never recover their old swagger after this.
It was a brutal first half for Luiz Felipe Scolari’s side, who had arguably spent too much time worrying about Neymar’s absence and not enough plugging the sizable gap left by the suspended Thiago Silva in defence. Now it was Dante’s inferno for his replacement.
Five goals were shipped in 19 first-half minutes, one from each foot of the brilliant Kroos, who showed why the European champions Real Madrid will do all they can to prize him away from Bayern Munich. Yet the Brazilian marking was shambolic, leaving the keeper Julio Cesar horribly exposed and Brazil were booed off at half-time. And worse.
Schurrle added two more after the interval for good measure to complete the trouncing. Oh, and this being a piece about goals, we ought to record that Oscar scored a 90th-minute consolation for Brazil.
Golden Boot contenders –
6 – James Rodriguez (Colombia).
5 – Muller (Germany)
4 – Neymar (Brazil), Messi (Argentina).
3 – Van Persie, Robben (both Holland), Benzema (France), E Valencia (Ecuador), Shaqiri (Switzerland), Schurrle (Germany).
2 – Kroos, Klose (both Germany), Oscar, Luiz (both Brazil), Cahill (Australia), Mandzukic (Croatia), Suarez (Uruguay), Gervinho (Ivory Coast), Depay (Holland), Perisic (Croatia), Martinez (Colombia), Sanchez (Chile), Dempsey (USA), Bony (Ivory Coast), A Ayew, Gyan (both Ghana), Musa (Nigeria), Slimani (Algeria), Ruiz (Costa Rica), Djabou (Algeria)
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