As “Marcha Real” reached its crescendo in the Al-Bayt Stadium, captain Sergio Busquets – standing at the end of the Spanish line-up – turned to his teammates and yelped a “Vamos!” Moments later, once the final note of Deutschlandlied had rung out, Joshua Kimmich roared at his colleagues.
For Spain, the message was to avoid complacency; to maintain the focus and intent that resulted in a 7-0 evisceration of Costa Rica last week. In Germany’s case, it was a rallying cry to find a level above the one displayed in a 2-1 loss to Japan. That would be the minimum requirement to keep alive the dream of stitching a fifth star onto the black block of night sky on their new jersey.
