Reality bites. For the first time in over two years, the fundamental flaws in the German nationalmannaschaft have been brutally exposed. For all the hype about Germany’s attacking style and Jürgen Klinsmann’s revolution (a euphemism for the importation of American psychobabble in place of tactical and technical substance), this morning finds the harsh light of reality breaking through the cracks and shining brightly on the naked deficiencies of Joachim Löw and his squad.
This observer has long scoffed at notions perpetrated by those easily taken in by the charisma and personality of the new Bayern Munich coach that Germany had somehow found a new glittering generation and style of play that would return the nationalmannschaft to the top table of world football.
Klinsmann gambled that as his defence was so poor the only option was to exploit the youthful endeavour of his inexperienced players and ruthlessly attack the opposition. That worked well enough against Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Sweden in the World Cup. It worked less well against Poland, and didn’t really work at all against Argentina or Italy – the only genuinely good sides the Germans met in the 2006 tournament.
Löw, credited as the brains behind Klinsmann’s vacuous but charismatic project, has obviously continued in the same tactical vein – except that he now believes his own publicity.
As Bundestrainer, the Swabian has a profile to maintain. He loves his wraparound scarves and Grecian 2000 dyes. Perhaps he thinks a little of King Otto’s Hellenic magic will rub off? On Thursday, he lost the run of himself.
Marcell Jansen was played at left back instead of Philipp Lahm – the real deal in that position at least in an attacking sense. Torsten Frings and Michael Ballack were given the run around by Croatia’s technical midfield. Frings, a fine dogger in the middle of the park, had his limitations exposed. It’s why he failed to truly make the grade at Bayern Munich. He’s an honest grafter, but he’s no Paul Breitner or Lothar Matthäus – and these players are the ones by which all German midfielders need to be measured.
Ballack, the team’s leader, was anonymous. He appeared only to harry and heckle the referee, something Matthäüs made into an art form. However, the 1990 World Cup-winning captain also contributed on the field of play. The Chelsea man failed spectacularly to provide leadership by expample. It’s hard to see how he can expect to feature in 2010 World Cup plans on this evidence. At 31, it looks like his time is up.
The fragile central defensive partnership of Christoph Metzelder – who barely kicked a ball for Real Madrid last season – and the lumbering Per Mertesacker (a member of Werder Bremen’s back line – enough said, surely) just doesn’t work. How Löw things another Bremen player Clemens Fritz is an international defender remains a mystery to this observer.
Up front, Miroslav Klose is woefully out of form and needs to be rested. He barely registered for Bayern last season – quite a task given their supreme domestic dominance – and Mario Gomez looks as limited at international level as he did in Stuttgart’s embarrassing Champions League campaign. Gomez is a trier, but he has not found his feet at this level yet.
Lukas Podolski is wasted on the left of midfield – the position Bastian Schweinsteiger should surely have started in. Then again, just as the appallingly coiffured midfielder was playing himself back into the starting line-up, he lost his head and was sent off.
Germany face Austria and need only a point from Monday’s meeting in Vienna to progress to a quarter-final with Portugal. Unless Löw gets his tactics – and selection – right, the palpable limitations of this generation of German players will once again face lamentable exposure on the big stage. Austria won’t be good enough to do it, but Portugal certainly have the capacity. Time for some substance over style.
Brian A. O’Driscoll, Berlin.
1 Comment
June 15, 2008 at 1:09 pm
Envious englander