On 1 September 2001 Germany met England during the qualifying stages of the 2002 World Cup, at the Olympiastadion in Munich. England won the game 5–1, abetted by a hat-trick from England striker Michael Owen. All of the England goalscorers were Liverpool players. <br /> <br />The two teams had met most recently in 2000, in what was the final match at the old Wembley stadium. The match ended with a 1–0 victory for Germany, with Dietmar Hamann scoring. The last time that England had beaten Germany had been during the Euro 2000 competition in June 2000, with a 1–0 win at the Stade du Pays de Charleroi in Belgium. Alan Shearer had scored the winning goal in what was the twilight of his international career. With the exception of that match England had not beaten Germany in competitive football since the 1966 FIFA World Cup Final. <br /> <br />The match was an evening game, and began nervously, with both teams attempting to maintain possession. However, after just six minutes, Germany scored a goal. Oliver Neuville headed down a lofted pass into England's penalty area, and Carsten Jancker was able to tap the ball past English goalkeeper David Seaman. <br /> <br />The lead did not last long, and after Michael Owen was fouled outside the German penalty area in the 12th minute, England were given a free kick. England captain David Beckham took the kick, which neither the attacking nor defending players managed to touch. However, Gary Neville was able to head the ball back into the penalty area, where Nick Barmby headed down to Owen, who volleyed the ball past Oliver Kahn. <br /> <br />Both teams then had chances during the rest of the first half, notably Sebastian Deisler for Germany; David Seaman and Oliver Kahn both made some good saves. Just before the end of the half, England got another free kick on the edge of the German penalty area, which was again taken by Beckham. Though he failed to beat the German wall, he was able to cross the ball back into the penalty area. Rio Ferdinand headed it back to Steven Gerrard, who shot the ball into the bottom-left corner of the German goal from 25 yards out, putting England 2–1 up. <br />Second half <br /> <br />Three minutes after the kick-off, a cross from David Beckham found Emile Heskey, who headed the ball down to Michael Owen, who was unmarked. Owen hit the ball into right-hand corner of the net. Oliver Kahn managed to get a hand to the ball, but was unable to stop England claiming a 3–1 lead. <br /> <br />Although Germany were able to create further chances, it was England who struck again in the 66th minute. Steven Gerrard's successful tackle gave him possession, and he set up a great through ball for Owen, who sprinted into the box and fired the ball over Kahn's head to give England a 4–1 lead. This made Michael Owen the first England player since 1966 World Cup winner Geoff Hurst to score a hat-trick against Germany.
