Afternoon all and welcome to the real football factories, I mean South Korea v Germany. Things are getting warm, are they not?

Away we go! Toni Kroos has had a new haircut for the occasion.

The captains shake hands. It's very moving.

Anthem time. The South Koreans give it some.

The ball has been deplinthed. Exciting!

...and here they come!

The players are in the tunnel....

It seems that the Germans involved in that ruckus with Sweden have been suspended. I'd have given them a medal.

Digested read: this afternoon will be fascinating, and hopefully exciting.

I touched on this earlier, but Mesut Ozil could be important today. South Korea are playing yer two banks of four, and will defend deep, I imagine. There'll be time on the ball, small spaces to be found, and in Timo Werner he has pace to seek out. Or he might just disappear...

So, the omission of Thomas Muller, then. The problem with and for him is that if he doesn't score, he doesn't do anything. So not scoring made him vulnerable and eventually something had to happen. They look a better-balanced side without him.

This definitely isn't Jurgen Klopp.

So, what can happen is:

Germany's last-gasp win over Sweden means that all four teams still have something to play for in the final round matches. A draw against Sweden will be enough to confirm Mexico's place in the knockout stages, but they could yet be eliminated if both Sweden and Germany win by big enough margins to finish above them on goal difference.

South Korea have to beat Germany, hope that Mexico beat Sweden, and then will require goal difference to finish as runners up in the group.

Germany and Sweden go into the final matches on the same points and same goal difference, meaning that they essentially must better the other's result to ensure qualification.

"Precision, concentration and patience" - the elements missing from German play so far, according to Jogi Low. I wonder if this is an over-confidence issue - forcing the game because you're certain stuff will happen to you because you're certain you'll win.

And South Korea won't simply let them have this. They've resisted hard against both Sweden and Mexico, and seem top have decided that they can't compete in midfield so instead will be looking to get the ball forward and put Hummels and Sule under pressure. Their 4-4-2 will also make things tricky for Reus, but might suit Ozil, who'll be looking to drift infield.

So what's what for Germany now? They did well to hang in there against Sweden, but we can't really convince ourselves that they played well in the second half - they did not, despite getting an early goal. Perhaps Kroos' winner will inspire them, but just as likely, Jogi Low still has no clue as to his best team and they struggle. They might still win, and might still win the whole thing, but unless something changes, they'll be relying on inspiration rather than cohesion.

I feel like I'm there with them.

Korea will play a 4-4-2, while Germany have, I think, stayed in 4-3-3. Ozil will play off the left - he unbalanced the midfield when in behind Werner against Mexico - and Reus on the right, with Goretzka, who should, in my not very humble opinion, have been in all along, the most attacking midfielder. I'm excited to see how he does because he has all the attributes to become a star.

Germany make five changes: Hummels and Sule replace Rudiger and Boateng at centre-back - Boateng is suspended but would presumably have been dropped for his efforts against Sweden. In midfield, meanwhile, Khedira, Goretzka and Ozil are in, and Muller, Rudy and Draxler are not. It's been a good run for Muller, but eventually it had to happen.

Shin Taeyon makes four changes to the side that faced Mexico: Koo Jacheol is back up front, Jung Wooyoung replaces the injured captain Ki Sungyueng, Hong Chul is in for Kim Minwoo and left-back, and at centre-back Yun Youngsun makes his first appearance of the competition.