Germany at the World Cup

Manager: Joachim Low
Captain: Michael Ballack
FIFA World Ranking: 5
World Cup Appearances: 16
World Cup Winner: 1954, 1974, 1990

Profile:

The Germans are one of the most feared countries when it comes to World Cups. Not only have they been prolific in qualifying for World Cups, 16 appearances in the finals so far, but they’ve also been one of the more consistent nations once they’ve gotten there. However, although they’ve won the Jules Rimet trophy on three occasions, they’ve now gone nearly twenty years without a world cup winning campaign, with their last success coming back in 1990. They were third in the previous world cup back in 2006 while they came even closer in Korea when they lost to Brazil in the 2002 final.

On paper, the Germans don’t appear to have the most talented of squad but they have a unique knack of going deep into the major tournaments and producing the goods when it really matters. They will be bitter after losing another final in the European Championships in 2008 and will be eager to end their recent final heartaches and go all the way in South Africa. Joachim Low has been left with the task of guiding the German’s to the World Cup crown and he appears to be the right man for the job.

Manager:

A manager cannot win a game but he can certainly dictate how it can pan out. When Joachim Low took charge of the Germans back in July 2006, many were saying he was inheriting one of the poorest German sides in their history. However, despite the doubters, he guided Germany to a third place finish in the 2006 World Cup which was conveniently held in Germany. The pressure was on him to deliver a good performance from his team and they certainly did that. Now he’s won over the fans, he can now concentrate on going one better and avenging the Semi-Final defeat in 2006 and hopefully book a place in the final of the 2010 World Cup.

Joachim Low has 10 years managerial experience on his CV although his spell at Germany was and still is his first International duty. By the time the World Cup comes round he will have spent nearly four years as manager of Germany and that has to be a major plus point in terms of team chemistry and morale. He’s enjoyed instant success as German manager but he still lacks a winners medal. He does posses a squad capable of big things although he will have his work cut out getting them to another final showdown.

Key Players:

Michael Ballack -

The Chelsea stalwart is the talisman for Germany and in some aspects he has carried the team for the last couple of years. It’s fair to say that Ballack has been the star in what has been a ordinary looking German side but his experience as a player in both the Bundesliga and the Premiership has enabled him to guide Germany to a major European final but he unfortunately lacks a winners medal. The German fans are expecting big things from Ballack this summer and when it comes to the big games, he never lets them down.

Miroslav Klose -

At 31 years-of-age, Klose is getting on but he’s yet to lose that cutting edge which has made him one of the worlds greatest ever strikers. He has a prolific goalscoring record for his country, scoring 44 goals in 88 games. That’s a goal every other game for Germany. However, he is now fighting a battle against the younger generation to keep his rightful starting place for Germany. For the time being at least, he is winning that battle but he will need a big tournament in South Africa as it will be probably be his last chance to shine on the big stage.

Strengths:

Germany’s biggest asset will be their strength and aerial prowess, with Germany’s nickname ‘The Powerhouse‘. Joachim Low has several players with immense strength and added height that will be a major advantage at set-pieces. Their centre-backs are Per Mertesacker (6ft 6inchs) and Christoph Metzelder (6ft 4inchs). Both are very strong in the air in both their own penalty area and the oppositions. Their midfield possess the likes of Piotr Trochowski, Simon Rolfes and Michael Ballack who are all very strong on the ball and have a great ability of retaining the ball. Their forward options include Miroslav Klose, Stefan Kiebling and Mario Gomez, all are very strong in the air and aren’t too bad with the ball at their feet either.

Weakness:

Although we touched on the centre backs being very strong in the air due to their height advantage, they can be exposed with neat passing and slick through balls. What’s more, both their full-backs in Christian Pander and Philipp Lahm like to get forward whenever they can and this leaves Germany vulnerable on the counter. They may have conceded just four in qualifying so far but they’ve yet to face a team with real quality in the final third. When they eventually do, we expect the German back line to falter.

Qualification:

Sector: Europe
Current Position: 1st
Win-Draw-Lose: 5-1-0
Goals Scored: 18
Goals Conceded: 4

Qualifying Statistics:

- Germany have kept their unbeaten record intact throughout qualifying, winning five and drawing one.
- The Germans have kept their cool with just two yellow cards throughout the whole of qualification.
- 18 goals in six qualifiers is the second highest goal tally in the European sector.
- Lukas Podolski has scored four times in qualifying and is currently Germany’s top goalscorer.
- There have been nine individual goalscorers for Germany in qualification.
- Were Germany to qualify for the world cup, it would stretch a streak of 16 consecutive world cup appearances.

World Cup Potential:           4/5

We don’t rate the actual German side although no one can deny that the German’s play their best football when the pressure is really on. In the 16 World Cup’s they’ve reached, only once have they failed to bypass the groups and that was all the way back in 1938, before the second world war. A good side always needs a bit of luck and we have no doubt the Germans will have their fair share in South Africa in combination with some hard work that should aid them in their bid to reach at least the knock-out stage of the competition.

Current World Cup Odds: 12/1 – Bet365

World Cup Group D - Table

World Cup Fixtures and Results