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Germany need to beat Costa Rica in their final FIFA World Cup group stage clash on Thursday, December 1, if they are to potentially secure qualification into the knockout stages. However, fans are not happy that manager Hansi Flick has chosen to leave Niclas Fullkrug out of the starting lineup in such a crucial game.
The striker has exceeded expectations in the World Cup, securing a vital goal to secure a 1-1 draw against Spain in their previous clash. However, Flick has left the forward out of the starting lineup, and fans have taken to Twitter to slam the manager's decision.
Here are some of the best tweets:
Germany sit on the brink of elimination from the FIFA World Cup, but Hansi Flick remains hopeful
It has not been an easy period in Qatar for Die Mannschaft, who have not won a match and currently sit at the bottom of Group E. Defeat against Costa Rica will surely spell an exit for Germany, but a win might secure them the qualification that Hansi Flick desperately wants to achieve.
Speaking at the game, the tactician noted that he had not considered Germany's early elimination, stating (via The Daily Mail):
"I'm normally an optimist, I’m not considering anything like that for now. Maybe you can ask me the same question after the match. I hope you will not be forced to ask it."
The Germans are widely seen as a European powerhouse, but their return of two games without a win does not bode well for their FIFA World Cup run. Even snatching all three points against Costa Rica is no guarantee that they will enter the knockout stages if Japan secure a win over Spain.
Flick noted that the side had put themselves in a problematic situation, but pushed for them to put in their best efforts:
"This is our own fault. We are in this situation and now we need to do what we can. We will give it 100 per cent. We need to perform and deliver."
This is not the first time Die Mannschaft are getting eliminated from an important tournament early on, as they were kicked out in the quarter-finals of Euro 2020. They also suffered a group-stage exit in the 2018 edition of the FIFA World Cup in Russia. They won the 2014 edition, but have failed to reach similar heights since then.
