Favourites Germany had a solitary goal lead over their opponents France in the first half of their quarter-final match of the FIFA World Cup 2014 at the Estadio do Maracana in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil till filing this report on Friday night at 10.30 pm.Karim Benzema of France got a chance in the 7th minute but his shot narrowly passed away the first bar.Hummels of Germany put his team ahead by a header using a spectacular free-kick by Kroos in the 13th minute of the play.The winner here plays the winner of Brazil-Colombia in BeloHorizonte on Tuesday (July 8).Germany’s right-back Shkodran Mustafi is out of the World Cup after tearing a thigh muscle in the game against Algeria. The head-to-head record is very close. They’ve played each other 25 times, with France winning 11, Germany winning eight, and six draws. Over the past month, France and Germany have asserted themselves as two of the top contenders to winthe 2014 World Cup, but after the match only one team will move on.Germany are playing in their ninth World Cup quarter-finals in a row, but Joachim Loew’s side have failed to impress in Brazil since their thumping 4-0 victory over Portugal in their opener. Last time out, they scraped past Algeria with a 2-1 win in extra-time that has prompted a huge debate back home over the team’s performances, tactics and style. There have been 17 goals scored in the three previous World Cup meetings between France and Germany, an average 5.7 goals per game.The two sides last met in a friendly in February 2013. France took the lead through a Mathieu Valbuena strike in the first half, before second half goals from Thomas Müller and Sami Khedira secured the victory for Germany.Germany have reached the semi-finals of the last three World Cups. No nation has ever made the last four in four successive tournaments.Germany are unbeaten in 15 internationals (Won-10 Drawn-5), longer than any other side still involved at the World Cup.
