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An emotional Javier Mascherano said he felt "immense pain" after losing the World Cup final against Germany.
Mario Gotze struck in the 113th minute to give Germany a 1-0 win over Argentina in Sunday's final at the Maracana.
Mascherano was proud to have made it to the final, but he admitted losing in such a dramatic way was hard to take.
"The pain is immense," the Argentina vice-captain said with tears in his eyes. "We wanted to win this for the people of Argentina, for those who came here to support us, but we lost.
"We have represented our country the best we could though.
"We have to lift our heads despite the pain. We gave everything we could out there."
Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratingsShow all 23 1 /23Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Manuel Neuer Performed with authority on ground and in the air - but was fortunate not to be punished when racing out to punch clear off the head of Higuain. 6/10
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Philipp Lahm Again started at right-back and still remained one of the main threats going forward for Germany. Solid in defence in commanding showing. 7
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Jérôme Boateng Cleared danger from underneath his own crossbar as Messi drove forward and made another vital interception as substitute Aguero closed in. 7
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Mats Hummels Troubled by pace and trickery of Messi in opening minutes but recovered composure to keep forwards at bay. Used strength to hold off Higuain. 6
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Benedikt Höwedes Carded before half-time for a late lunge on Zabaleta and powered header against Romero’s post at end of first-half when should have scored. 6
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Christoph Kramer Brought in after Khedira’s warm-up injury and was then hurt himself when caught by Garay. Attempted to stay on but taken off after half an hour. 6
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Bastian Schweinsteiger First player to go in the book after light challenge on Lavezzi. Got back to make crucial blocks on Messi and Perez and also influenced Germany’s attacks. 8
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Thomas Müller Enjoyed running battle with most of the Argentine backline. Found space on right side to link up with Lahm and delivered dangerous balls into box. 6
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Toni Kroos Was impetus behind semi-final victory but fortunate not to cost side when heading straight to Higuain. Weak shot at Romero and sent another effort wide. 6
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Mesut Özil Arsenal man struggled to get on the ball in right places at start but his bearing on the match grew. Moved inside after introduction of Schürrle. 7
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Miroslav Klose Record finals scorer pulled out of early challenge as Romero charged out. Veteran looked a little off the pace, failing to trouble with header or shot. 5
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Mario Gotze Bayern Munich midfielder replaced record-breaker Miroslav Klose in the closing minutes of normal time and displayed marvellous composure to chest down André Schürrle’s pass before volleying past Sergio Romero. 7
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Sergio Romero Last season’s Monaco reserve keeper excelled again. Semi-final hero was not troubled by Kroos effort and displayed solid handling when called upon. 7/10
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Pablo Zabaleta Got forward well, making valuable headed clearances and combining to good effect with Biglia. Made important block on Klose and caught by Höwedes. 7
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Martin Demichelis Stood up well to sporadic German attacks but was let down by his own indecision as he was caught in possession badly by Klose. 7
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Ezequiel Garay Robust challenge on Kramer eventually forced young opponent off. Never hid from a challenge and gave Argentines a presence at set-pieces as well. 6
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Marcos Rojo Wing-back has enjoyed stellar tournament and went in strong on Müller. Kept occupied by pace and passing of Lahm though. 6
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Javier Mascherano Content to drop back when required and also helped engineer attacks. Surrendered ball to Klose before hacking him down to earn booking. 7
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Lucas Biglia Early shot was blocked by Höwedes and displayed good positional sense. Fine ball through to Messi came to nothing. Blocked off Lahm. 6
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Enzo Perez Unable to reach Messi cutback and struggled to make his mark, Swapped flanks in effort to have more impact but taken off near end of normal time. 6
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Gonzalo Higuain Shot across goal and sent effort wide when presented with Kroos header. Slotted home when offside and caught as Neuer charged out of the box. 7
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Lionel Messi Surged forward to create opportunities but was well policed. Drove past post early in second half and shot wide but again faded in influence. 7
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Germany 1 Argentina 0 player ratings Ezequiel Lavezzi Put himself in place to be pushed over by Schweinsteiger and win free-kick. Pace gave Germany food for thought before early departure. 6
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Gonzalo Higuain missed a good chance in the first half and Lionel Messi spurned a similar opportunity after the break.
Substitute Rodrigo Palacio put a header over when clean through in extra-time.
Mascherano wishes his team-mates had put their chances away.
"We had the best chances but we didn't take them," the Barcelona midfielder said.
"And we only had to last another five minutes at the end. We just didn't have that little bit of luck that you need in a final."
PA
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