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So much folklore, history, expectations and pressure can only be attached to the German national team. No other team knows more about the big stage than Germany. 8 finals and 4 trophies is just what make Germany a powerhouse at the biggest stage of them all. Joachim Low’s German army will have the world looking at them with bated breath.
The 2014 World Champions enter Russian soil as not just defending champions, but as the number 1 ranked team in the world and also as firm favourites to add a fifth star to their badge. The Germans have been paired in Group F alongside South Korea, Sweden and Mexico in what many are calling as the “Group of Death”.
The Germans however are a class apart and too heavy for their group opponents. Winning the group is one of the many things that have probably been taken for granted by the media and the fans at large.
However, on their day, Sweden, South Korea and Mexico are very capable of snatching a point away from the champions. Germany have managed a silver medal in the 2002 edition, a bronze in 2006, a bronze again in 2010 and a winner’s medal in 2014. This team has made it to the semis in all their previous four attempts at the World Cup.
Fixtures: Superpower Germany has their task cut out in Russia
Germany will consider themselves lucky as the fixtures are well spread out and will give enough recovery time to all their players. They take on Mexico on June 17, Sweden on June 23 and South Korea on June 27.
None of Germany’s group stage opponents have ever made it to the grand finale of a World Cup and to expect any of them going the distance, looks bleak. The challenge posed will get weaker in the group stages as Germany progress. Mexico are closest to the champions ranked 15th in the world, Sweden find themselves in 23rd and Korea are in distant 61st position.
There is a bigger story than what the FIFA ranks depict. The gap in quality between the Champions and the rest of the group however is much more than what the rankings have to suggest. Winning the group may find Germany encounter neighbours and tricky opponents Switzerland in the Round of 16.
What will be most tricky is if at all they make it past the Round of 16, they will be awaited by the hungry and wounded Brazilians in the quarter-finals. The road for Die Mannschaft is not going to get any easy when they meet a team which is playing at its peak, has a new coach and a new look team, a few world stars including Neymar and Countinho and most importantly, a team that will be waiting to make amends from the 7-1 mauling incurred by the same opponents four years ago.
Anything beyond the semis, will put either of France, Argentina, Spain or Portugal possibly come in the way between Germany and the coveted cup.
Mario Gotze and Andre Schurrle miss the bus for Russia
Joachim Low has now been with the German football team for two world Cups before, once as an assistant to Jurgen Klinsmann in 2010 and once as the World Cup winning manager in 2014. This manager will go into the World Cup exactly knowing how to prepare a champion team.
To make a champion team, it is obvious that the manager will have to make hard yet tactical decisions. A major one in his team selection has been the omission of last World Cup final hero Mario Gotze and Andre Schurrle.
There is always a tendency to highlight the omissions in the media in the build up to the World Cup, but Germany have a talent pool that should make the manager’s job extrememly difficult when he decides who are the final 23 who make the trip to Russia.
World Class Germans attempt to win a fifth World Cup
Manuel Neuer was the winner of the prestigious Lev Yashin Golden Glove Award last time in Brazil. Though he has not had a particularly memorable season with Bayern Munich, being sidelined mostly due to injury, he will be Low’s first choice between the sticks in Russia. The rest of the German will give welcome selection headaches to the manager.
Julian Draxler is a different player now since the last World Cup. A midfield that shall also have the world class Toni Kroos and Sami Khedira all of whom are their club’s mainstays. Oozing with talent and ready to burst onto the big stage are Leon Goretzka and Sebastian Rudy who will provide stiff competition for the positions in the centre of the park.
The dark horse however would be German right back Joshua Kimmich. When Phillip Lahm retired after successfully guiding the team to the World Cup, Kimmich had big boots to fill in. But the young defender has proven his class and captained his team in recent times besides finding the back of the net on numerous occasions.
Kimmich shall be extremely useful in Low’s style of play who have experienced campaigners Jerome Boateng and Mats Hummels in defence and Thomas Muller and Mario Gomez up front. Two players who missed out on World Cup glory due to injury last time are Marco Reus and Ilkay Gundogan.
With the kind of form they find themselves in, Germany shall be very strong to tackle in the midfield. However, after a near-invincible season with Manchester City, it will be striker Leroy Sane whose attacking prowess will decide how far Germany progress and how much they dominate in their route to the finals.
What next?
Germany have the best names in the world in their World Cup squad at present. They are heavyweights who maybe group stage bullies. Joachim Low’s Germany will play two friendlies before they play Panama in the league stage.
They take on World Cup spectators Austria on the July 2 before playing out a relatively easy fixture against Saudi Arabia on July 8. The world will however await a repeat clash of Belo Horizonte, Brazil from four years ago.
This time the Seleccao will hope to have the services of Neymar and Thiago Silva whom they missed due to injury and suspension respectively. The Seleccao are ranked second in the world behind Germany and arguably are one of the favourites like Germany themselves. This should make a delicious quarter-final encounter should both teams progress beyond the Round of 16.
Should there be euphoric celebrations on the streets of Cologne, Munich, Berlin and Dortmund, the Germans need to qualify and conquer on the night of July 15 at the Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow.
