AL KHOR, Qatar—Germany was eliminated from the group stage of the World Cup for the second tournament in a row.
The four-time champions beat Costa Rica 4–2 Thursday but it wasn’t enough to reach the round of 16. Japan’s 2–1 victory over Spain in the other group game allowed both of those teams to advance instead, with the Japanese team finishing at the top of Group E.
“I was just in the changing room and as you can imagine, the disappointment is huge,” Germany coach Hansi Flick said.
Playing as defending champions at the last World Cup, Germany also was knocked out in the group stage….