swag said:
Germany often excels at teamwork, which isn't one of the tangibles when you simply look at a roster.
So maybe Klinsman did a little aging out of his squad. As a summer tournament, that's not such a bad thing -- given that the older players can sometimes be more tired and nursing injuries longer. As long as there's a balance of some leadership and experience on the pitch.
Players like Lahm, Huth, Frings, Schweinsteiger, Kurányi all could come together as a unit on home turf and really make an impact.
And look at their group. Talk about soft...
Absolutely, Germany is well known for their ability to play as a team, and you can never write them off.
With that said, when they've had success earlier, their roster has been far more impressive than that of today..
I saw that sought after Phillip Lahm on TV when Bayern played Mainz recently and he just don't cut it in my opinion. He could've done better when Mainz scored their first goal as he didn't do anything at all to prevent Muhamed Zidan from going past him. This is not the first time I've questioned his reputation, which I find to be somewhat overrated.
As for Kuranyi, he's strong physically and a determined finisher but it would surprise me if he becomes a top striker in the World Cup.
Frings will always do a solid job and Schweinsteiger is an excellent footballer who plays with a lot of passion. Germany better nurture the form of these two.
Huth is steady but very beatable for top class strikers, and let's be honest, he'll face plenty of those in the summer.
My prediction is that even though they're "home favourites" (though not actually being the real favourites), they will not even reach the semi finals.
Still, a prediction is a prediction, and not a certainty, so I'll finish off by saying what I know I've said a hundred times before in my lifetime:
You can never entirely rule them out.
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