West Germany 1974
The great Brazilian team of 1970 had dismantled; Pele was not there anymore. But they were not missed credit to the revolutionary brand of Total Football display by Netherlands who were led by the genius of Johan Cruyff. The hosts West Germany were led by Franz Beckenbauer now at the peak of his career. They were embarrassed early on lost 1-0 to a team from the other side of the Berlin wall- East Germany. The format was a tweaked a bit, instead of quarter-finals and semi-finals after the group stages, teams were divided into two groups of four teams. Poland impressed all with a third place finish at the expense of Brazil. West Germany eventually met Netherlands for the final. The Oranje had scored 14 goals in 6 matches and conceded only 1 and were favourites to win. They scored the opening goal without West Germany having touched the ball. Cruyff forced a penalty from Hoeness which Johan Neeskens converted. But the Germans bounced back once again when they were least favoured just like in 1954 against Hungary. Paul Breitner drew level for the Germans after Bernd Hoelzenbein was brought down by Wim Jansen inside the box. Then two minutes before the break, Gerd Muller turned on a Rainer Bonhof cross and shot low past Jan Jongbloed for the winner. The greatest defender of all-time, Beckenabuer lifted the brand new FIFA World Cup trophy that we see today.
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| © AP Images |
Winners- West Germany
Runners-Up: Netherlands
Golden Boot: Grzegorz Lato (Pol)