FIFA 2014 Semi-Finals Predictions: Match #61 Brazil vs. Germany

Final Score

Brazil 1 Germany 7

Overview

Match number 61 is the first semi-final match between Brazil and Germany. Brazil won against Colombia to enter the semi-finals, whereas Germany beat France to move to the top four.

Teams

Brazil: Even though Brazil reached the knock-out stages by finishing on top of Group A and won the "Round of 16" match, it was hardly the kind of performance that impressed its fans and admirers. However, Brazil's performance against Colombia in the quarter-finals was enough to silence the critics who had earlier accused the South American team of having no sting in its attack. Brazil destroyed Colombia in the first half itself. It was not only about the score line but also about the dominance. There were high expectations for James Rodríguez's team which had played excellent football before the match. However, the kind of pace Brazil played with and the early goal by its captain Thiago Silva left the Colombian team clueless. There were fewer Brazilian attacks in the second half. The free-kick of David Luiz that made it 2-0 for Brazil must be considered as one of the finest in this tournament. It was the first time since 2002 that Brazil scored a world cup goal with a free-kick. Nevertheless, there were two major setbacks in the match for Brazil though it won the match, 2-1. First, Silva won't play against Germany due to a couple of yellow cards. Secondly and more importantly, Neymar is out of the World Cup due to broken vertebra.

Germany: There is hardly any team in the world that can match Germany's World Cup performance. This is the 13th time it reached the world cup semi-finals. It reached the finals seven times and won three of those. This is also the fourth consecutive time Germany reached the semi-finals. It has always been clinical in its approach. It plays no-nonsense football and means business whenever it goes to the field. There has been an evolution of the German team's performance in this year's tournament. It started big with a 4-0 win against Portugal but goals have dried up ever since. Germany is at its best with lethal attacks that choke the opposition. For some reasons, it has not managed to score many goals but it has always scored enough to proceed further. It is very much aware of the broken wing of the Brazilian force without Silva and Neymar. The German team is shrewd enough to take advantage of that. At the same time, it will try to shrug off the habit of finishing at the "third position" so many times after reaching the semi-finals. Thomas Müller started with a hat-trick but could not find a goal in the last two matches. There is only one way Germany can stop Brazil. It must score goals at least 2-3 times.

Head to Head

These two teams played 21 times against each other before. Brazil won 12, Germany 4, and 5 of those ended in a draw. There were 63 goals scored in total. Brazil scored 39 of those and Germany 24.

Key Players

Brazil: Marcelo, Hulk and Julio Cesar

Germany: Thomas Müller, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Philipp Lahm

Date, Time & Venue

Brazil's time zone is UTC/GMT -3. The match starts at 5 pm (local time) on July 8, which means it is 6 am on July 9 in New South Wales, Australia. The match will be held at Estádio Mineirão in Belo Horizonte.

Prediction

Brazil is comparatively weaker on paper than Germany as it will play without two of its most important players, Neymar and Silva. However, Germany has not looked invincible in the recent past. Brazil will be at its aggressive best. Hulk will play a major role in the match. Germany will give its best as well but fail to score enough number of goals. Brazil will win it 2-1 and make it to the final for eighth time.

Contact the writer: s.mukhopadhyay@ibtimes.com.au