#4 Germany and Spain are not the same top teams
It was surprising to see so many plaudits written about the German and Spanish teams coming into the tournament. They are good, no doubt, but definitely a notch below their best teams from earlier in this decade. Both countries are going through a transient phase, Germany especially, after the retirement of stalwarts such as Philip Lahm and Miroslav Klose. Germany beat Ukraine 2-0, but the scoreline was flattering.
The second goal came in the last minute of the game on a breakaway, and Ukraine would have left the game feeling how they didn't score at least two goals in that one. New captain Manuel Neuer made some fine saves, one especially good one at full stretch to preserve the points after central defender Skhodran Mustafi had given them the lead.
Spain too are looking to bounce back from the horror of their World Cup defence with a bunch of new players. Spain too had to rely on a defender, Gerard Pique, for the decisive goal, while the Czechs had a few chances themselves and tested David de Gea on three occasions. These two teams will have to get better and fast.
