As Algeria played their final match the day before West Germany played Austria, the two European teams knew what result they needed in order to both qualify for the next round. A West German win by one or two goals would see both West Germany and Austria qualify. A larger West German victory, by three goals or more, would see West Germany and Algeria qualify (this is because Algeria had scored more goals than Austria, which meant they would qualify even with the same goal difference), while a draw or an Austrian win would eliminate the West Germans.