Germany Will Face Ghana In a Must Win Match on Wednesday.

After a shock 1-0 loss to Serbia, Germany are on the brink of an early World Cup exit. With only 3 points, anything dropped against the Black Stars on Wednesday night means that Serbia, should they defeat Australia, will advance ahead of Germany into the round fo 16.

Germany went from being one of the immediate favourites after their 4-0 thrashing of Australia, and then plunged into a sub-satisfactory complacency that is so unlike the German teams we have seen throughout the years. Mesut Ozil, Germany’s playmaking trequartista, was silenced by the Serbian midfield and was unable to make his mark on the game. Lukas Podolski and Miroslav Klose, who Germany rely on for the majority of their goals, failed to impress in front of the net on that evening. Sami Khedira and Bastian Schweinsteiger, who are employed to take a game by the scruff of it’s neck in the midfield were surprisingly outmuscled and under-determined.

All of this, obviously, must change against Ghana. While Ghana has not been particularly impressive, they have still managed to take points from both of their first two group matches. Three against Serbia and one against Australia means the Black Stars top the group. While most of the team is made up of younger players, they do shoulder their responsibilities incredibly well. Kwadwo Asamoah, Anthony Annan, and Asamoah Gyan have been key to Ghana’s performances thus far. Asamoah and Annan have marshalled the Ghanaian midfield in the absence of talisman Michael Essien, who is certainly not an easy man to replace: just ask Chelsea FC. Gyan’s workrate and determination up front for Ghana has worried top defenders like Nemanja Vidic and Branislav Ivanovic. His pace and ability to get behind a defense will need to be snuffed out unless Germany plan on outscoring their African opponents.

From what we have seen of the Germans thus far, three things are clear. One, Germany is fantastically fluid. The way they can turn defense into attack in a split-second is a brilliant trait of this German team. Sami Khedira and Bastian Schweinsteiger possess excellent defensive and attacking skills. With that, they can win the ball off of opposition players and then immediately spring an attacking opportunity for their side. They will be key against the very physical Ghanaian midfielders. It will be their first priority to ensure that the Germans, not the Ghanaians, control possession and are not being pressed. Secondarily, they will look to spray passes to forward players who can make an immediate impact at the other end of the pitch, in the forms of Podolski, Ozil, Mueller and Cacau, who will most likely start instead of the suspended Miroslav Klose.

Two, Germany’s wide men must be on their game. Lukas Podolski and Thomas Mueller are clinical finishers and pinpoint passers. They will break quickly at the Ghanaian defense, looking for crossing, shooting, or through-ball opportunities as they advance on opposition defenders. They must not allow themselves to run into tight cul-de-sacs though. Ghana will be aware of the threat they pose, and the Germans will most likely be double-teamed out wide. A Ghanaian defensive midfielder, Annan or Asamoah, will drop back and help out their full-back while Germany attack. Because of this, the overlapping Philipp Lahm will be key. Badstuber is a defender who rarely gets forward, so I believe Jerome Boateng, who is quicker and better on the ball, should start instead. Also, it will be interesting to see how he plays against his brother, Kevin-Prince Boateng. The overlapping full-backs of Germany will allow Podolski and Mueller to have a way out of any potential cul-de-sacs they run into, and will provide Germany with an extra man going forward.

And finally, it is imperative, absolutely necessary, that a German striker makes a point to Joachim Loew. Miroslav Klose will most likely announce international retirement after this tournament, and Germany will have to look elsewhere for their threat in front of the net. Mario Gomez has failed to impress, and Cacau, I don’t believe, is good enough to consistently be leading the line as the lone striker for Germany. There are few other options on Germany’s bench, though. Stefan Kiessling is the other forward Germany have available in their 23-man squad, and while he has an impressive goalscoring record for Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga, I don’t believe he is of the quality that Germany require up front. Unfortunately, it will be a problem area for Germany until Klose returns from suspension. Cacau is a quick fix who can make an impact with his physicality and quality finishing, but he is not of the class of the great German strikers. He will not go down in the history books of German football with  the likes of Gerd Mueller Rudi Voller. Germany must continue to produce talented youngsters, and will have to look again into their U-21 team for a real quality finisher who can make the difference for Germany in front of goal in future tournaments. Although, it would be worth a go converting Thomas Mueller into a lone striker and playing Trochowski or Marin along the right side.

Germany will know that they must win this match if they stand a chance of progressing to the next round. Those old German characteristics of grit and determination, and a need to achieve success in the face of impossible odds will be key here. The German mentality must shine through with these players, and then the football will follow.