Neuer made more passes than Messi at the 2014 World Cup

Muller's tournament was one of many milestones, with the Bayern Munich star scoring the 2,000th goal in the history of the German national team during the semi-final. Along with that, he also ran a total of 83.957km, equivalent to almost two marathons, during the tournament. Of that tally, 34.5km came when 'Die Mannschaft' was in possession, with Muller reaching a top speed of 30.5 km/h.

However, by far the most surprising statistic was the one pertaining to Neuer, whose 244 passes outstripped Messi, a man widely considered to be one of the best players in world football.

Neuer's ability to perform as a 'sweeper keeper' has had a huge impact on footballing tactics, encouraging the use of goalkeepers who are comfortable on the ball and can act almost as an 11th outfielder in possession.

Such is Neuer's cmnfort with the ball at his feet that he played two more passes than Messi during the tournament and with the pair both set to be key players for their respective countries once again this summer, it will be interesting to see if the same result comes to pass.