The highs and lows

Here are five highs and lows that helped make the most memorable World Cup in decades:

BRAZIL IMPLODES: Germany skewering Brazil with five goals in 19 minutes in their semifinal was the soccer equivalent of the scene in Bambi when a hunter kills the fawn's mother. Watching such a tragedy befall the five-time champion at its home World Cup became difficult even for some German fans, who later said they just wanted the torture to stop. Second-half substitute Andre Schuerrle had other ideas, scoring two more for a record-breaking 7-1 trauma for the soccer superpower that gave the world Pele.

NEYMAR KNEED: One of the greatest injustices of the tournament was Spanish referee Carlos Velasco Carballo allowing play to continue as Neymar howled in agony face down on the turf, his third vertebra fractured. Brazil's superstar striker later said he could have been paralyzed had the knee to his lower back from Colombian defender Juan Camilo Zuniga hit two centimeters closer to his spine. The injury in the quarterfinals put the 22-year-old out of the only World Cup he will ever play on home soil.