Germany messed up the start of the World Cup and lost 2-1 to Japan. In the second game of Group E, Hansi Flick's team managed to draw 1-1 thanks to a late goal by Füllkrug. Nevertheless, the DFB team is in last place in its group with one point and 2:3 goals. Why the chances of getting ahead are still solid.

On Thursday at 8 p.m. Germany will play Costa Rica, while Spain will play Japan at the same time.

One thing is clear: Germany must beat Costa Rica on Thursday to maintain their chances for the round of 16. Without a win, the 2014 World Champion would surely be eliminated.

If Spain wins against Japan at the same time, Spain would have 7 points, Germany 4 and Japan and Costa Rica would each have 3 points. Germany would therefore continue as second in the group.

But if Japan and Spain end in a draw, Germany would need to beat Costa Rica by at least a two-goal margin to secure a better goal difference than the Asians. The DFB team must win at least 2-0 on Thursday.

If Germany succeeds, then it would only be able to fly out of the tournament if Spain loses to Japan. Then Japan would have six points, would be uncatchable and Germany would have to overtake Spain. However, Spain go into the last matchday of the preliminary round with a goal difference of 8:1. Accordingly, Germany would have to win at least 7-0 against Costa Rica to overtake Spain, assuming Spain loses 0-1.

Conclusion: As long as Spain doesn't lose on the last day of the game, the DFB team has progress at the World Cup in their own hands. And even then, you would only have to ignite a fireworks display against Costa Rica to kick the favored Spaniards out of the tournament.