GOMEZ SNUBBED BY LOW FOR GERMANY'S PROVISIONAL WORLD CUP SQUAD

D. Ray Morton, 8th May 2014.

Once Germany's first-choice striker, injuries and a move to Serie A have resulted in losing his place

Germany manager Joachim Low named his 30-man provisional World Cup squad today with the notable exclusion of Fiorentina target man Mario Gomez. The selection of thirty will be reduced to twenty-three for the final tournament. Here are the thirty players who will be considered for the final squad:

Goalkeepers: Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich), Roman Weidenfeller (Borussian Dortmund), Ron-Robert Zieler (Hannover)

Zieler has made the squad on merit, not on reputation or high profile transfer speculation

Defenders: Jerome Boateng (Bayern Munich), Erik Durm (Borussia Dortmund), Kevin Grosskreutz (Borussia Dortmund), Benedikt Howedes (Schalke), Mats Hummels (Borussia Dortmund), Marcell Jansen (Hamburg), Philipp Lahm (Bayern Munich), Per Mertesacker (Arsenal), Shkodran Mustafi (Sampdoria), Marcel Schmelzer (Borussia Dortmund).

Hummels can be a vital at the World Cup but must prove his development has not stalled

Midfielders: Lars Bender (Bayer Leverkusen), Julian Draxler (Schalke), Matthias Ginter (Freiburg), Leon Goretzka (Schalke), Mario Gotze (Bayern Munich), Andre Hahn (Augsburg), Sami Khedira (Real Madrid), Toni Kroos (Bayern Munich), Max Meyer (Schalke), Mesut Ozil (Arsenal), Bastian Schweinsteiger (Bayern Munich), Marco Reus (Borussia Dortmund), Andre Schurrle (Chelsea).

Ozil has had an up-and-down season at Arsenal and will need to rediscover his top form if Germany are to excel

Strikers: Miroslav Klose (Lazio), Kevin Volland (Hoffenheim), Thomas Muller (Bayern Munich), Lukas Podolski (Arsenal).

Here at SoccerStash, we have discussed why we don't feel Germany will win the World Cup before; a combination of big game anxiety, squad deficiencies and lack of a top striker and leaving Mario Gomez out only compounds this notion further. Of the entire thirty men listed, only veteran Miroslav Klose can be identified as a proper, out-and-out front man.

Looking at it from top to bottom, the goalkeeper selection makes sense. Marc Andre Ter-Stegen, who has been heavily linked to a move to Barcelona throughout the season, will feel disappointed not to be amongst the three chosen. Perhaps his form doesn't warrant a place and maybe the Camp Nou outfit will approach a more accomplished keeper despite his supposed comfort on the ball and his ability to play as a "keeper sweeper" in the same vein as the out-going Victor Valdes.

The error last summer that waved a red flag over Ter Stegen's credentials as an international-class goalkeeper

Sami Khedira is a surprise inclusion in that his season and World Cup looked dead and buried after rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament earlier on in the season. When fit, Khedira is a reliable midfield destroyer, a vital player who sits as the rest of the midfield bombs forward with quick counter attacks. His place in the thirty might only mean an assessment of his condition and he may not necessarily make the final squad.

Khedira blowing out his knee last year but could yet recover in time for Brazil

Several inexperienced players at international level are included: Erik Durm, Shkodran Mustafi, Matthias Ginter, Leon Goretzka and Max Meyer. They have been included in the provisional panel in order to get a feel for the national team, priming them for the EURO 2016 qualification process more than likely.

But with Gomez out and Klose as the only true No. 9, how will Germany approach this World Cup tactically? Do they intend to start the 35 year-old (who'll be 36 on June 9th) and play him throughout the tournament or perhaps they'll experiment by fielding an attacking midfield or a winger in the oh-so-hip "false 9" role? Bayern Munich dabbled with the idea of using Mario Gotze like that earlier in the season but Pep Guardiola decided to abandon the experiment when he figured Gotze's finishing was not up to the same standard as the ultimate false 9, Lionel Messi.

Gotze, a fine No. 10 but as a "false 9", Messi he is not

Low's selection has the element of surprise about it. Either that or confusion. Does he knows his best team and how will their group opponents, Portugal, Ghana and the United States fare against them? World Cup Group G should be very interesting.

MESUT "BOÖZIL" AND THE MEN WHO STARE AT GÖTZE

MESUT BOÖZIL AND THE MEN WHO STARE AT GÖTZE

D. Ray Morton, 7th March 2014.

During Germany's victorious 1-0 friendly win against Chile on Tuesday night, Mesut Özil received a chorus of boos from the his own fans despite setting up a goal for the man who might very well steal his place in their World Cup starting XI, Mario Götze. Chile had several dominant spells throughout and many people labelled it as a lucky victory for the Germans. Coach Joachim Löw is left with a real dilemma when it comes to team selection come next summer. He and assistant manager, Hans-Dieter Flick, have a lot of observing to do between then and now. The German squad seems to be overloaded with talented players for the attacking midfield positions and in regards to that central slot, Özil and Götze could find themselves in direct competition.

 

The conundrum is as such: which exact formation to play and which personnel to use? Here are some possibilities...

1. Stick with the plan and field Özil in his natural position. 

Since Jogi Löw took charge of Germany in time for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, he has used the Arsenal playmaker as his main No. 10 usually played behind a conventional centre forward like Miroslav Klose or Mario Gomez. In a 4-2-3-1 system, with wide players offering additional support, this incarnation of Germany can be fluid and devastating. In the last two tournaments with Löw at the helm, his side have swept away weaker, disorganised teams only to be stopped by a highly technical side in Spain during the last World Cup and a highly tactical side in Italy during the Euros of two years ago. The system could have its limitations in that Özil tires, this season more than ever considering the amount of games he's had to play as Arsenal's key player. For this to work, Götze would have to be rotated in, something which the young Bayern Munich star may not be too pleased with as he blossoms into one of the world's best playmakers in his own right.

2. Play both but with Götze either wide or as a "false 9".  

This is certainly something that Löw must consider seeing as he might have to incorporate both into his starting line-up. Özil would remain in an advanced central midfield position and Götze would have to settle for one of the wide roles or play as a false 9. Pep Guardiola has experimented with Götze in that role at Bayern this season but one wonders whether this can be effective at World Cup level as opposed to when steamrollering meek opposition in the Bundesliga. Özil probably plays too high up the pitch to be used in a false 9-accommodating formation. The best false 9 role in world football, demonstrated by Lionel Messi at Barcelona, requires his midfielders to sit that little bit deeper, dictating the pace in the middle allowing him to drop deep and search for space. Götze is not as good a finisher as Messi and having him in that role with Özil on the pitch could lead to confusion as they could well find themselves getting in each others' way.

3. Drop Özil entirely and play Götze as either the No. 10 or false 9.

Özil's form has dipped significantly over the past few months and Löw must genuinely consider dropping him if he can't rediscover the performances that had made the 25 year-old an early candidate for Premier League player of the season. Özil was taking the league by storm back in September but now he appears isolated and exhausted and one would question whether he can get back to his best in time for Brazil. Götze could very well flourish as Germany's first choice playmaker and giving him the starting berth from the beginning would be a huge vote of confidence. Löw must ask himself, when it comes to the showdown, and Germany face proper, tough opposition in the latter stages - do you want the largely indefatigable Götze or the somewhat languid genius of the ex-Real Madrid star? Decisions ahead.