DOHA: Germany forward Thomas Mueller said his country’s second successive first-round exit from the World Cup was an “absolute catastrophe”, which team-mate Kai Havertz likened to “watching a horror movie”.
The Germans beat Costa Rica 4-2 but Spain slumped to a 2-1 defeat to Japan on Thursday that meant Germany finished third in Group E behind Spain, with the teams equal on four points and the positions decided only by goal difference.
“It is unbelievably bitter for us because our result would have been enough,” Mueller said.
“It’s a feeling of powerlessness.”
Mueller was part of the 2014 World Cup-winning team and was also in the side that was eliminated at the same stage four years ago in Russia.