4. West Germany 4-2 Yugoslavia (aet) – 1976 semi-finals
West Germany were the defending champions, they also won the World Cup two years ago, but they were two down inside half an hour in the semis. However, the quality of the West German side was again reflected when they were back on level terms with less than eight minutes left, courtesy of goals from Heinz Flohe and substitute Dieter Muller.
The game finished 2-2 and there was no separating the two sides even after the first half of the extra time got over.
It looked like West Germany would have to get the luck from penalties this time to make the finals, but Muller, who was also the debutant and had scored from a header which was his first touch in international football earlier, had other ideas. He completed his hat trick after scoring twice in the extra time and taking his team through to the final.
Not only was it a dream debut for Muller but also a game for Yugoslavia to forget as they were stunned in their capital city of Belgrade. West Germany eventually lost the final on penalties to Czechoslovakia and Muller finished with the highest number of goals(4) in the tournament.
