Substitute Álvaro Morata headed Jordi Alba’s cross past both Niklas Süle and Manuel Neuer after 62 minutes.
It looked like it would be the winning goal that in practice brought Spain to the round of 16 and at the same time put the Germans in a real bind. But another substitute – Niclas Füllkrog – equalized in the final stages of the match.
The point the Germans got was absolutely necessary to avoid another failure in the playoffs.
The Germans had needed to win the match to be able to progress completely on their own – and opportunities were not lacking in a desperate push after Füllkrog’s equaliser.
“We gave everything, we had two or three good chances but didn’t score, but we have the chance to progress with a win in the last game,” says Müller.
Great save by Neuer
Dani Olmo was extremely close to breaking the deadlock already after seven minutes. Emil Forsberg’s club mate in Leipzig got a good hit, the ball slipped between the legs of German defender Thilo Kehrer and obscured the view of Manuel Neuer.
At the last moment, the veteran goalkeeper got a fist on the ball and guided the shot into the crossbar.
Neuer made his 18th World Cup appearance, equaling Cláudio Taffarel, Brazil and compatriot Sepp Maier as the all-time leading World Cup goalkeeper.
Soon he is alone in having played the most matches.
Antonio Rüdiger, 29, thought for a short while that he had taken the Germans a big step towards the round of 16. Unmarked, the Real Madrid defense headed in a free kick, but the VAR check showed he was offside.
Rüdiger was diligent offensively and tested Unai Simon with a shot on the half volley from a difficult angle.
Successful entry
Morata, who replaced Ferran Torres, had been on the pitch for eight minutes when he sent chills down the spine of tens of millions of German football fans.
The opening 1-2 loss against Japan put “Die Mannschaft” in a difficult position. After Morata’s goal, it was precarious.
The national team captain Hansi Flick – whose job is reasonably in danger if the Germans do not survive the group stage – did what he could to change the picture of the match.
In a triple substitution, Thilo Kehrer, Thomas Müller and Ilkay Gündogan were replaced by Lukas Klostermann, Niclas Füllkrug and Leroy Sané.
The effect was palpable.
Sané was a constant threat but it was the powerful Füllkrog who hammered home the equalizer in the 83rd minute – in just the striker’s third cap. The forward from Werder Bremen has undergone four extensive knee operations.
— What a goal. But that’s football. It needs those kinds of stories, says Thomas Müller about Füllkrog to SVT.
Drama can wait
Ahead of the final group stage on Thursday, all four teams have opportunities to advance.
With its four points, Spain has the most favorable starting position. A point against group runners-up Japan, who are on three, is enough to advance.
Germany must beat Costa Rica (three points) – otherwise the four-time (1954, 1974, 1990, 2014) world champions will be eliminated in the group stage for a second successive World Cup final.
A number of other scenarios also apply because goal difference decides if the same number of points are scored, not head-to-head meetings.