9 Reasons Why Brazil Were Thrashed 7-1 By Germany At The World Cup

Brazil's 7-1 defeat in the semi-final was a national humiliation.

1. Neymar's injury

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Brazil's best player was ruled out of the rest of the tournament after he was kneed in the back by Colombian defender Juan Camilo Zúñiga in the Seleção's 2-1 quarter-final win. Neymar was Brazil's talisman, main goalscorer and primary creative threat and in his absence, the team looked lost and rudderless. Neymar had scored four goals and made one assist in his five appearances. Neymar's injury also had a huge psychological impact on Brazil, with the team wearing Forca Neymar caps and holding up a Neymar jersey before the match. Without Neymar, Brazil's hope was gone and the team crumbled.

2. Germany's genius

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Brazil were desperately poor, but Germany's brilliance should not be underestimated. Germany have missed out on major honours in recent years despite making four semi-finals in a row, but the current team looks set to go one step better and secure a fourth World Cup title. Germany were utterly ruthless in attack and scored four goals in six scarcely believable first half minutes. And despite leading 5-0 at half-time, Germany weren't finished, as substitute Andre Schürrle scored two fine goals in an excellent cameo.

3. Silva's suspension

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Thiago Silva is one of the best defenders in the world, but he was suspended for the semi-final after collecting a needless booking towards the end of Brazil's quarter-final victory over Colombia after challenging goalkeeper David Ospina. Silva is Brazil's captain and organiser of the defence and without him, their team lacked a leader. It's hard to imagine Brazil capitulating in such a shocking manner if Silva had been on the pitch.

4. Fan pressure

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Ever since Brazil won the right to hold the 2014 World Cup seven years ago, the country has been growing ever more expectant. Brazil are the most successful nation in the tournament's history with five wins and fans expected the team to add a sixth title on home soil. The last time Brazil hosted the World Cup, in 1950, the team lost in the final to Uruguay and the country had waited decades to put that shock result behind them. Instead, last night's humiliation added a sad chapter to the nation's sporting history.

5. Diabolical defending

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David Luiz had been one of the players of the tournament until the semi-finals, but he had a disaster in the Brazil defence after a performance that left the former Chelsea man in tears. Luiz was paired with Dante in the absence of captain Silva and the pair looked like strangers in the back line, while full-backs Maicon and Marcelo were both poor. The BBC's Alan Hansen, in one of his last appearances as a television pundit before retirement, said Luiz put in "the worst performance I have ever seen".

6. Klose's record

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The headlines focused elsewhere, but Germany striker Miroslav Klose made World Cup history by scoring his 16th goal in the tournament. Klose's goal was Germany's second on the night and prompted their rapid spurt of strikes that quickly made the game safe. Klose is a classic penalty box poacher, with all of his World Cup goals coming from within 12 yards. On a night of pain and misery for Brazil, it was their own legend Ronaldo whose record was finally broken. Klose's first effort had been blocked by Brazil's hapless goalkeeper Julio Cesar, but he knocked in the rebound to write himself into the history books.

7. Müller's drive

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Klose's record might not last long, however, as Thomas Müller moved to ten World Cup goals by opening the scoring in the 7-1 rout. It was a typical Müller strike as the attacker stole in unmarked to sweep in a low finish from a corner. In many ways, Müller typifies this Germany team. He appears to have no outstanding attributes, but his relentless drive and ability on the ball, as well as his knack of being in the right place at the right time, carries his side forward. Müller's will to win was seen clearly when Schürrle knocked in the sixth by pinching the ball off Müller's toes, leading to the forward letting out an angry roar. The 24-year-old won the Golden Boot four years ago in South Africa and has added five more goals in this year's tournament. Two goals in Sunday's final would secure that honour again and Müller would become the only player in history to retain the Golden Boot.

8. Kroos control

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Toni Kroos is Germany's most important midfielder and he was in the thick of the action again with two goals and an assist. Kroos has an outstanding all-round game and Brazil couldn't live with his forages forward from deep as Germany's best moves flowed freely through the 24-year-old. Kroos is rumoured to be a target for new Manchester United manager Louis Van Gaal, with the Bayern Munich player much in demand.

9. Scolari's tactics

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The absence of Neymar left Brazil manager Luiz Felipe Scolari in a quandary and he picked winger Bernard to play on his home ground in Belo Horizonte, a decision that backfired badly. Germany manager Joachim Löw picked a three-man midfield of Kroos, Sami Khedira and Bastian Schweinsteiger and they dominated against a Brazil team that featured four attackers - Bernard, Hulk, Fred and Oscar - all of whom were ineffective. That decision left midfielders Fernandinho and Luiz Gustavo isolated and unable to stem the carnage, while left-back Marcelo left his team wide open with a series of rampages down the wing. An apologetic Big Phil said after the game: "Who is responsible? Who is responsible for picking the team? I am. It’s me. So the catastrophic result can be shared by the whole group, and my players will tell you we will share our responsibilities, but who decided the tactics? I did. So the person responsible is me. I did what I thought was best."