The rivals find themselves locked together at the top of Group E, with the Ivorians having dispatched Ecuador<\/a> in their opening match. But veteran Neuer wants his side to keep the pedal to the metal, and secure qualification to the last 32 with a game to spare.<\/p>\n Germany’s previous two World Cup campaigns have ended in utter humiliation, with the four-time winners failing to reach the knockout stages. And Neuer is desperate to avoid making it a hat-trick of failures.<\/p>\n The Bayern Munich<\/a> goalkeeper said: “That\u2019s our aim, and it’s all in our own hands. We made a good start and we don’t want to look back at previous tournaments.<\/p>\n “The players aren\u2019t dwelling on that. All our focus is on the next step, and for us that means Ivory Coast.<\/p>\n France<\/a> could await Germany in the next stage, but Neuer is reluctant to look too far ahead. He added: “We’ll be facing a very strong side in Toronto, but we\u2019re really well prepared. “We know what to expect, and I think Ivory Coast know what to expect too.<\/p>\n “It would be something special for us to have our place secured after two games. Then we can start looking further ahead.<\/p>\n “There\u2019s already a lot of talk about France, but we\u2019re not looking at that. We just want to focus on the next game.”<\/p>\n Content cannot be displayed without consentBelgium get unexpected visitor<\/p>\n Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis will attend Belgium’s clash with Iran<\/a> to cast an eye over Romelu Lukaku and Kevin De Bruyne.<\/p>\n Both are facing uncertain futures in Naples.<\/p>\n Lukaku has expressed a desire to stay with the Italian club despite playing only 64 minutes last season due to injury. He was also caught up in disciplinary proceedings after allegedly ignoring a request to report for training in late March.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, De Bruyne recently declared he was pleased to see the back of Antonio Conte<\/a> because his football was too defensive.<\/p>\n Speaking during a recent press conference, De Laurentiis hit out at both players, stating: “They have made statements that are either acceptable or unacceptable depending on your point of view.<\/p>\n “We\u2019ll see what happens when we all get back to work. We\u2019ll see what the new coach thinks of it. If someone has to leave, they will leave. What\u2019s the problem? There are plenty of footballers in the world<\/a>.”<\/p>\n Lukaku is unlikely to start despite forcing an own goal from the bench against Egypt<\/a>.<\/p>\n Join our new WhatsApp community <\/a>and receive your daily dose of Mirror <\/a>Football <\/a>content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.<\/a><\/p>\n Upgrade your World Cup TV setup with the Sky Glass ‘designed for football’<\/p>\n This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more<\/a> from \u00a34.50<\/p>\n Sky<\/p>\n![\"Content](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/be\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/0_Untitled-June-03-2026-at-091411-3jpeg.jpg\"\/)
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