Throwback Thursday | Impervious Oliver Kahn’s one mistake changes fate of 2002 World Cup final
Moments transcends everything in sport and none more so than in football especially the good ones. Welcome to 'Throwback Thursday', where we take a look at a moment in time, and in this week’s edition, we look at the 2002 World Cup final and a moment that Germany's fans will never forget.
It’s the 30th of June of 2002 and the entire world is watching the International Stadium Yokohama at this moment in time. It’s the World Cup final taking place in Asia for the first time in its history so naturally, this is a landmark moment in itself. But this is contested by the two best teams in the tournament but not the favourites and that’s something we’ll get to later. For now, the stage is set and we’re well into the game with thirteen minutes of normal time left on the clock.
Dieter Harmann has just been disposed of by Ronaldo having done the same to the Brazilian just moment earlier and Ronaldo has set up Rivaldo. The stadium is buzzing with anticipation as the Brazilian turns and sets himself up for a 25 yard shot on goal with the great Oliver Kahn standing behind the German wall. Ronaldo has continued his run and is undoubtedly still onside by the time Rivaldo has taken his shot with Roberto Carlos making an overlapping run on his left.
But the midfielder isn’t looking for the pass despite the full-back in acres of space with only one thought on Rivaldo’s mind. He looks up and unleashes a 25-yard shot on goal that much to the surprise of half the world has taken Kahn by surprise. Time has now stopped but before we dive into the climax and reach the end, let’s roll it back and figure out how we got here in the first place. Because as luck would have it, this is not where Germany should be and that’s something that almost everybody agrees ahead of the game.
The spirt of this German side has never been in question but the quality of this time has been the one in question because this is far from the greatest German side we’ve ever seen. That may be a little harsh on the team but it’s a just statement because while this is a team full of solid and hard-working German players, they simply did not have the quality and panache that their opponents in the eventual final did. The likes of Carsten Jancker, Jens Jeremies and Oliver Neuville were all good at what they did but barring Oliver Kahn and Michael Ballack, there were no stars.
Miroslav Klose would go on to make his name at the tournament and yet despite their lack of “star” quality, Germany did alright for themselves. They waltzed through their group stage games, beating Saudi Arabia and Cameroon by a combined scoreline of 10-0 with only the Republic of Ireland holding them to a 1-1 draw. But beating Saudi Arabia (8-0) and then drawing against Ireland meant that Germany’s knockout stages dreams were crumbling.
Somehow, they beat Cameroon thanks to the fact that the Indomitable Lions missed several chances but their resilience shone and German walked away as 2-0 winners. Their knockout stage games all finished with the same 1-0 scoreline as but it took great performances from everyone. Neuville’s 88th-minute winner against Paraguay, Oliver Kahn’s shot-stopping vs USA and again Kahn’s excellence against South Korea meant that Germany were through to the final.
Brazil, on the other hand, were strong favourites. They won all three of their group stage games comfortably and set up a round of 16 against Belgium. A Rivaldo and Ronaldo combination would prove tough for the Belgians to handle, with Rivaldo and Ronaldinho doing the same against England despite a Michael Owen goal. That set up a game vs Turkey who, barring England, had been their toughest fight so far. They caused problems for the Selecao in the group stages and overcame Turkey’s outstanding team in the semi-finals but yet the 1-0 score-line didn’t do justice.
And the only goal of the match came from Ronaldo. Arguably the greatest striker the in the world at that point of time and it was around whom the hype of the 2002 World Cup was built around. Well him, Rivaldo and Ronaldinho and all three men shone at the tournament. Up until the finals, the trio had managed 13 goals all on their own with Ronaldo leading the charge with six, Rivaldo with five and Ronaldinho with 2 although the latter was more of a creator.
Ronaldo vs Oliver Kahn, who would win? © GettyYet that set the tone for the game and the Germans needed this win. They failed to make it past the quarter-finals at either the 1994 or the 1998 World Cup despite winning the 1996 Euros. Then as defending European champions, the Germans failed to make it out of the group stages at the 2000 competition. In arguably one of the most entertaining tournaments, Die Mannschaft lost to England and Portugal and would end the tournament with only a single point against Romania.
That effectively set the tone for the 2002 World Cup and going into the final all their hopes were pinned on both Ballack and Oliver Kahn, and to their credit bot men stepped up. Ballack would net three goals on their way to the final but Kahn hit another level altogether. He was on the top of his game throughout the group stages and the knockout stages conceding just one goal. But few were surprised by his performances as Kahn had played an integral role during the domestic season.
He led Bayern Munich alongside Roque Santa Cruz, Giovane Elber, Hasan Salihamidzic and co to a double of the Bundesliga and the Champions League. Then in the season preceding the 2002 World Cup, Kahn would finish the Bundesliga season with 19 clean sheets to his name in 32 and won another Bundesliga title which effectively sealed his place as Germany’s number one. Not that it was ever going to change because even at 33, the German was one of the best in the world.
His performances leading up the final established that and it meant that the final was built as a Ronaldo vs Oliver Kahn final and they put up a show. Not as much as anyone expected but Kahn was tested although his back-line did their job and ensured that their stellar goalkeeper wasn’t forced into too many saves. The same happened at the other end, but with Michael Ballack suspended for an accumulation of too many yellow cards, the Germans lacked incision.
The third-best chance, however, in the first half fell to Ronaldo about fifteen minutes from half time with a looped pass from Ronaldinho finding his compatriot one-v-one against Kahn. But for the first time in this game, the striker’s first touch was a terrible one and it meant that his shot on goal was more of the ball colliding with his knees and was eventually smothered by Kahn. The second-best one would come a minute before half-time and it came from the boot of Kleberson. Again, Ronaldo played a part with him laying off the pass for the midfielder and his 25-yard effort looped over Kahn, cannoned off the cross-bar and back into play, giving the German goalkeeper no chance.
The best, however, was what the world wanted to see. Roberto Carlos attempted a shot on goal from the left and it, unfortunately, turned into a powerful cross and somehow found Ronaldo. His first touch, this time, was fantastic and it set him up for the perfect shot which he swivelled and half-volleyed at Kahn but the German was in the right place to make the save. That was it though and then the second half arrived with only Gilberto Silva’s header testing the German number one.
Instead, the Germans piled on the pressure and looked likely that they might find the net before Brazil’s fantastic front-line. Then in the 66th minute, Dieter Harmann and the German defense neatly dispossessed Ronaldo, something they’d done all night and allowed Germany to break on the counter. But Ronaldo returned the favour, dispossessed Harmann and passed the ball to Rivaldo with only two German defenders standing in front of Kahn.
Roberto Carlos, who had turned back to stop the counter, was back on his bike in acres of space on Rivaldo’s left. Ronaldo has continued his run through the middle with the Germans only concentrating on the man with the ball allowing the most dangerous striker in the world a free run into the box. Oliver Kahn stands behind the German wall and yet the midfielder isn’t fazed by the best goalkeeper in the world and looks up, before unleashing a 25-yard left-footed shot on goal. It’s a half-hearted effort because Kahn has performed this routine multiple times over the course of his long and storied career and yet, there’s hope in Ronaldo’s eyes.
Welcome to a moment in history.