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Germany are now firm favorites to win the competition. Spain and England have both been disappointing so far and Netherlands will not progress even beyond the group stage most probably, this means that Germany now stand in pole position and this becomes their tournament to lose. With the win over Netherlands, they have already booked themselves a place in the quarterfinals. After a lot of speculation and a below par performance in the first game, the Germans seem to have finally got it right. They put in a clinical performance, functioning like a well-oiled machine to beat a very good Dutch side quite convincingly. Germany seems to be a team that knows its strengths and plays in accordance with them. Also their wing plays were impressive and they were able to create a number of chances from the flanks. German coach Joachim Low had said before the tournament that his side had matured over the past two years, and therefore had a better chance of winning the tournament and they have surely proved him right.
Mario Gomez seems to be the only striker so far, who has carried his sublime goal scoring form the domestic season into the European Championships. The beastly Bayern Munich star put in a fine performance to net a brace, and showed why he is probably the most feared striker in the tournament. Gomez also showed some sublime footwork, especially with his 180 degree spin before finishing his first goal, and silenced his critics by showing he is as good with his feet as he is with his head. Gomez has surely emerged as the prime contender to take home the golden boot. Van Persie showed his potential in the 76th minute with a shot that went past Neuer like a tracer bullet, but the chances of him netting more are slim as one can’t help but feel that the Netherlands’ next game in the tournament might now be a mere formality.
Bastian Schweinsteiger seems to be back to his best. Schweinsteiger displayed the astute footballing intelligence he is famed for as he conjured up two assists for Bayern teammate Gomez, apart from which he made some more insightful passes and also fell back to defend whenever the Dutch looked threatening. Schweinsteiger’s start to the tournament was somewhat mediocre as he was fighting for fitness having come out of injury only recently, but this performance has definitely quelled any such concerns. ‘General’ Schweinsteiger’s work rate through out the match was exemplary, and showed why his teammates both in Germany and Bayern, look up to him.
Bert Van Marwijk’s decision to continue with the same starting XI, who put in that dismal performance against Denmark backfired as the Dutch once again seemed to lack bite in the final third. When he did substitute in Huntelaar and Van Der Vaart in the second half, it was a little too late as they were already fighting a losing battle after going down 2-0 to a side like Germany. The two substitutions however, did have a profound effect on the game and helped the Oranje aggressively dominate the game early in the second half. Indeed, the Dutch were a little unlucky to not score before Van Persie smashed in a screamer in the 76th minute, but then again, it was too little too late. Hopefully the coach has learnt his lesson and plays both Huntelaar and Van Persie in a 4-4-2 formation against Portugal, to at least stand a mathematical chance of progressing.
The German defense seems to be holding up well under pressure. Though the Germans are fantastic going forward with players like Muller, Ozil and Podolski; they seemed to be lacking a little in defense. On the contrary, so far the defense seems to be rock solid. They held up well against Portugal and have done exceptionally well against the Dutch too. In particular, Boateng has done quite well. He was in charge of keeping Ronaldo quiet in the first game and then Sneijder in the second, and has accomplished it with top marks, especially with the crucial and painful block he put in against a powerful and well-aimed Sneijder strike. Neuer has done well in goal and apart from the unstoppable shot from Persie; the Bayern custodian has done well to deny every one else so far.
