Germany

Return To Normalcy

As a fan it was hard to go back to watching the German national team get back to playing football. It brought a smile to my face, however, when the Ivory Coast came out of the dressing room reminding us all of the common noble spirit of football and human compassion. Over their brilliant orange jerseys were black armbands and white shirts in honor of Robert Enke.

The German team also emerged with black armbands in addition to their new 2010 home jerseys. The team seemed for the first quarter hour cohesive and galvanized. They were rewarded with a penalty that Lukas Podolski duly converted – dedicating it to Robert.

Then things truly reverted to normalcy. Perhaps the players were still shaken by the events and lost focus, perhaps it was too early to play football again, whatever the reason Germany sat back and let the Ivory Coast into the game. The truth may be that the Ivory Coast had a much better midfield on the day. The German defense was repeatedly carved open exposing Phillip Lahm’s shaky mindset and recent unfamiliarity with playing at left back.

The players still had the best of intentions and tried their best to remind themselves the significance of the match. Podolski, Trochowski, and Özil all had great chances on goal, but it was the Ivory Coast who struck next. Actually, it was Heiko Westermann who made an all too familiar poor choice in central defense. Under pressure Westermann hit a dangerous backpass to Manuel Neuer with other options open. Neuer in turn made a horrific clearance that struck an onrushing forward and the Schalke keeper watched helplessly as the ball rebounded into the net.

A good while of last-minute defending for both sides ensued along with a number of substitutions including the dejected exit of Jerome Boateng and the late debut of Aaron Hunt. Again it was Westermann who broke the stalemate. He was predictably caught out of position watching, as two forwards combined to daze Lahm for the 1-2 in the 85TH minute. The team at least didn’t give up and the substitutions brought a bit more life into the game. It was finally Westermann who charged forward and threaded a pass to Podolski who showed great skill with his left foot to equalize.

All in all the players did well. The team tried to win it. Wiese was rarely bothered. Neuer will have have better days. Westermann clearly would make a better midfielder than central defender. Lahm needs to learn being a left back again. Boateng needs to be more careful in the penalty area. Kiessling deserved his callup. Hitzlsperger once again did not.

As for Löw, he has become so predictable since Euro 2008 that BILD correctly predicted his lineup and formation a day before it was released. He now has the pool of players to potentially win the trophy in 2010. He just does not seem flexible enough to do it. His substitutions were once again ineffectual, but what can be expected of players introduced in the 80TH minute of a friendly in unfamiliar positions? Why position players whose strengths are predominately elsewhere, why choose players who are better left on the bench if not home, why not nominate players who have actually achieved something as of late?

These are all questions to be answered in the next few months in the next international year. So here is hoping to 2010… a year where a player like Marin can at least play instead of watching Hitzlsperger for 90 minutes from the bench.