Germans spell GUTTERDAMERUNG for Argentina

In Germanic lore, Gutterdamerung is the 'twilight of the gods', the eventual death and fall of the powerful Norse tradition.

But today, against Argentina, the word came to bear new meaning as a young, underestimated German squad overcame the explosive, highly ranked Argentinians.

Until today, Argentina was considered the odds-on favorite to finish as World Cup runners-up to Brazil. Now, the betting masters will have to find a new runner-up.

As in all the German matches, the difference was made by German 'wunderman' Miroslav Klose. The German striker hit solid gold in the 80th with a header delivering Deutschland from the jaws of defeat.

Two 15 minute overtimes were not enough to change the scoreline for the Germans or for the Argentinians. This lazy play set-up, do or die penalty kicks.

Here, the Germans exposed another of their many weapons. With German keeper Jens Lehmann in net, the Germans were able to put away 4 PK's to Argentina's 2. Lehmann was really the deciding factor here, as stopping PK's in World Cup competition is on par with robbing a Swiss bank in the middle of the day. It should not be possible.

Regardless, Lehmann's superb form sealed the German victory and advancement. Next week, the Germans will face Italy (as the victors in a Ukrainian match-up) and will take their shot at the World Cup final.

With Klose and Lehmann in the line-up, plus a entire nation in support, the Germans may very well win the whole thing, if they can get a couple of lucky breaks.