Germany did everything except the only thing that matters: score enough. They battered Paraguay with twenty one shots to seven, owned the ball, and went into the break a goal down anyway after Julio Enciso rose to head La Albirroja in front in the forty second minute. Kai Havertz dragged them level eight minutes after the restart, a goal from a corner was chalked off by VAR for a foul on the keeper, and from there it became a wall of white shirts that simply would not fall.

Through extra time it stayed 1-1, Germany pressing and Paraguay defending like their lives depended on it, until the lottery nobody in German football wants to enter: penalties. And the ghosts came out. Orlando Gill turned into a wall, saving from Havertz and Nick Woltemade, and even Manuel Neuer stopping Tonia Sanabria could not save them once Jonathan Tah missed and Jose Canale calmly buried the winner for a 4-3 shootout.

Paraguay are into the Round of 16, where the winner of France against Sweden awaits, and Germany are on a plane home from a tournament they statistically dominated and emotionally collapsed in. Domination means nothing without the finish, and a German penalty shootout is now less a contest than a horror franchise with a new sequel every few years.