German national team exits World Cup after Paraguay loss

Germany lost to Paraguay and did not advance past the group stage at the FIFA World Cup. The result marks the third straight tournament in which the team has exited before the round of 16. The manager singled out one player for a missed scoring chance in the opening minute. He said the team had four players in front of an empty goal and needed only a simple sideways pass.

Earlier incidents Eight years ago, two players of Turkish origin faced public criticism after meeting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan before the 2018 tournament in Russia. One of those players later retired from international football at age 29, citing the reaction.

The current manager had previously criticized the same player after a March friendly match. The player scored the winning goal in that game.

Player background The player scored five goal contributions in Germany's first two matches of this tournament. He came off the bench to equalize against Ivory Coast and later scored a late winner. The player, who previously worked in a factory, scored 104 goal involvements in lower-division German football before moving abroad.

He joined the national team after a transfer to a Premier League club. The player celebrated one goal during the tournament with a Kurdish dance. After a group-stage loss he said the opposing team appeared to want the result more.