The second round of World Cup group games continues on Sunday; Japan lose to Costa Rica in first match of the day; Belgium are then stunned by Morocco; Croatia take on Canada (4pm) and a crunch clash between European giants Spain and Germany (7pm)
Sunday 27 November 2022 19:50, UK
Germany will be looking to bounce back from their shock defeat to Japan when they take on Spain in one of the most highly-anticipated group matches of the 2022 World Cup.
Elsewhere in Group E, Japan failed to make it two wins from two when they lost to Costa Rica.
In Group F, Belgium missed out on the chance to secure qualification for the last 16 with a shock 2-0 defeat to Morocco - only the African side's third World Cup win in history.
Meanwhile, Canada will have to avoid defeat against Croatia to keep their chances of reaching the knockouts alive.
Germany's loss to Japan means they have lost five of their last eight matches at major tournaments, and they won only one of their six 2022 Nations League matches.
"It is difficult to say that statistic is in our favour," admitted Kai Havertz. "But in the past few years there was an overhaul of the team, a change of coach and new players, and that plays a role.
"But that is no excuse. At the end of the day what matters are the tournaments and when you see the statistic it is 1,000 per cent too small.
"We have to turn things around. We are all in the same boat and know what is at stake, and we will try to improve the statistic.
"I can understand the negativity of fans and media. We know we face criticism and not everyone is behind us. But the past is the past and it is a big game on Sunday."
Germany boss Hansi Flick wants the focus on his side redirected from politics to competitive matters. Some suggested the Germans were distracted by the debate surrounding their decision to stage a pre-match protest ahead of that midweek opener.
He said: "It's just the way it is. We need to accept a lot of other things about all this noise in the background of what happened before the tournament, and the story with the armband. The main focus for me has been the football."
Flick is looking for improvement from his side but remains fully committed to their overall approach, and admitted the Japan result led to some direct discussions he hopes will help bolster Germany's chances of avoiding an early tournament exit.
He said: "I think there were some situations where we made a lot of mistakes, where we got [things] wrong. Clearly, I tried to articulate it, and tried to explain that to the team, because it's important for them to understand and then to implement, and to make them sure that they can do what they've been told.
"We talked about the match. We're really convinced about our philosophy, how we want to play football. And, of course, we're going to try to do better tomorrow."
Canada manager John Herdman drew the attention of Croatian media after he said his team would go and "eff Croatia" in the wake of their spirited defeat to Belgium.
In response to his comments, a Croatian tabloid published a full-page picture of a naked Herdman with maple leaves covering his mouth and groin with the headline: "You have the mouth, but do you have the balls as well?"
Herdman, who had previously acknowledged his comments had not been respectful to Croatia, laughed off the tabloid story, saying: "My wife's coming after you guys.
"She wishes she had that guy. I've got a bit more of a belly than that."
Canada are playing at their first World Cup since 1986 after topping the CONCACAF qualifying table and, reflecting on how far his country have come, midfielder Stephen Eustaquio said: "There were times when playing Bermuda was exciting and now we are here.
"I think before the tournament we were favourites to not do a good job in this group but we outplayed Belgium, so anything can happen in this group."
There are slight fitness concerns over Croatia striker Nikola Vlasic had to come off at half-time against Morocco due to discomfort. While he has not sustained a serious injury, it remains to be seen whether he is fit to start.
Canada have reported no new injury issues from their defeat to Belgium. The 39-year-old Atiba Hutchinson could earn his 100th cap, becoming the first-ever player to reach the milestone for Canada.
Spain also have no new issues following their huge victory against Costa Rica. Luis Enrique may opt to stick with the same XI from the opening game as they look to secure a spot in the last 16.
Germany will wait for the last training session to see if winger Leroy Sane, who was nursing an injury, will be fit to feature.
"We have to wait for final training and afterwards we can say more," Flick said. "It is good news that he can train. Our medics did a lot of good work and we will see how the training goes."
Flick appeared by himself at the final news conference prior to the game and not, as usual, with one player, saying they all needed to stay in their training base in north Qatar to focus on the game.
Croatia vs Canada
Spain vs Germany
