Pre-match: Semi-final: Germany vs Italy - June 28 [R]

GERMANY
i think wie can win this. italy was not able to score even one goal against mediocre english team for 120 minutes. we always score. we dont like 0:0's. you'll see.

Well this is gonna be interesting and brutal! Nothing else

We have the cat in the sack, I would say.

All we need to do is outscore Italy. Easy.

It would be a different story if Prandelli did not have Italy playing with ten men by insisting that a half fit Cassano play. Come to think of it, Italy have been pretty good despite playing a man down in every game.

They looked quite tired after ~70 mins and almost none of them had to play 3 games a week in the last season

Yes, very easy. I bet that just a loudmouth like you is shitting his pants right now!

After all, I have some hope left for you: Germany has never lost an EC game against Italy!

http://www.fussballdaten.de/vereine/italien/deutschland/

I was hoping for anyone but Italy

This could be a fantastic match for the entire world, Borussia! Best of luck! I wondered when we would meet again and the time is here.

Italy to win in regular time 2-0 !!
Germany are very unlucky to play Italy again !!

i agree i like both but why are they always always on the same side of the draw. this just looks like 2006 all over again

I usually like facing the Germans, but I don't know about this time.

We should have beat England in regular time but like idiots we let them push the game into extra time and that will definitely hurt our fitness considering the game is on Thursday.

If Italy has any chance they're going to have play like their lives depend on it.

Italy is having a wonderful tournament, but they just cannot score. They could have scored more goals against Spain, Croatia, Ireland and England. Their formation is fantastic. Prandelli is doing a good job.

I have been waiting and hoping for this fixture. I've had that Germany vs. Italy record stuck in my face too many times by Italian fans, including on this forum. And it is embarrassing not to have ever won against this team. I must admit the 2006 defeat still rankles. Schweinsteiger, Lahm, Podolski and Klose were all on the pitch when it happened in 2006 and I bet they feel the same way, especially Schweini for allowing that critical pass from Pirlo. To me, and I would imagine most German fans feel the same way, this victory (if it can be obtained) would be much more important than the 15 game record and even if we should go out in the final, the tournament would be considered a big success.

So I believe, if this German team really is on its way to greatness, one of the most crucial things they will have to do, beside winning titles, is beat the Italians. Before that they can never truly be considered great. The time has come to either put up or shut up. If they win, they can finally put this curse behind them, if they lose, which they may, it will go to show that they have some work yet left to do.

I'm fully expecting a great nailbiter of a match, much more so than the game against the Netherlands. A game against the Dutch should never be such a lucklustre showing as it was. I blame the Dutch for this mainly, they didn't show any reaction after the two German goals. They scored a lucky goal in the end (or how many times do you think a guy of Badstuber's quality is going to allow himself to be tunneled, because this was not a positioning error, he stood perfectly, just didn't expect the shot at that very instant) and even then, with the equalizer in the air, they couldn't keep up the pressure for more then 8 minutes. The last ten minutes of the game were business as usual.

I presume the Italians will play very defensively and wait for opportunities to run counters, which will make them very dangerous. They've already shown great resilience in this tournament and they will be dangerous from start to finish, one thing you have to say about the Italians is they always play with heart. They will meet the German team at eye level and the setting is right for another match to go down in history, either way. If the Italians win it, their fans will have earned further bragging rights, for their team is the underdog going into this fixture.

The time is right, the omens are good. Germany have had two more days of rest and no OT play. On paper they are much stronger, they are much younger and more fit and their record in the run up to this tournament and in this tournament is better. If they can't do it now, when are they ever gonna do it? Let's go make some history!

Lowe also switched his entire forward line against Greece. So all six of Germany's forwards should be well-rested.

mmm, well the difference with past tournaments is that this time Germany do have a superior team in terms of quality and quantity.

I want Italy to play the best they can and then whatever will be, will be. it is no shame to lose to this impressive german side.
I doubt we can park the bus and play counterattack, our defensive line is far from being on par with our glorious past.
we will try to play a possession game, easier said than done.

I think this semi final will be much more entertaining than spain vs portugal. Do the germans have the confidence to defeat italy? They didn't show any in their rematch vs spain at the world cup, will they show any in their rematch of 06 vs italy? makes for a very intriguing game.........


2-1 italy wins

Submitted for your consideration...

Against the Germans, since Prandelli is clearly willing to tinker, why not pull out the old christmas tree?

Balo
Nocerino-Montolivo
De Rossi-Pirlo-Marchisio
Balz-B&B-Abate
Buffon

Considering I love Cassano and hate Montolivo, I can't believe I'm proposing this, but...

With Noce and Monto pushed high, you have a spare man against Schweni or Kroos to prevent them from orchestrating the play. Noce's endless running and genius for getting into the box in scoring position from out of midfield will keep Germany's deep midfield unsettled. If Montolivo can put in a shift like he did against England, and make those fancy touches you normally get from Cassano, this could be a dynamic pairing.
Meanwhile with DDR and Cheesio flanking Pirlo, whichever wing Ozil tries to drift to, he will be well-marshalled.
Stuff Schweini and Ozil, and Germany looks a lot less scary. Khedira is quality, but I'm okay with making him the man who has to beat us.
The only downside is that being so narrow means Lahm could run wild, unless Abate makes a concerted effort to get forward and keep him honest. On the other side, Balz should be able to tear Boateng apart. I expect Pirlo to look for him often no matter what the formation.

Meanwhile you can bring Cassano in fresh in the 2nd half and have him available for crunchtime after Balo has beasted the shit out of Hummels and Badstuber for 70 minutes. Or if Italy is up, maybe Di Natale to hit on the counter.

This will be a brutal match for real men. Damn will Germany lose again? As always? Brutal and interesting these are the two words I would describe this match with.

Judging from the Italian team's display so far, i really won't be surprised if they win, but the German's are favourites though.
I think the Italians will go back to their 3-5-2 formation for this match.

I spend a lot of time in Germany. I like some of their club teams game better then there National teams game.

Don't be fooled by Germany's result over Greece. Italy is not Greece.

Every time I watch a game between sides like this I think the game will be unbelievable. Most of the time it never is I think the game will be close, and who knows it might even go to PK's.

Here's a question for history buffs:

To me it always felt like no team has ever gone through after winning on penalties in the previous game. That's why I was queasy about Germany playing Italy in 2006 (after having won the penalty shootout against Argentina in the quarter-final) and Bayern against Chelsea this year (after having won the shootout against Real Madrid in the semi-final). Both times my gut feeling was right.

So while I know that Germany won the final in 1990 after winning on penalties in the semifinal, here's the question: Has any team ever won two games in a row on penalties?

Not that it matters, but to me it always felt like this was some form of fate or footballing justice, you don't win on penalties twice just like you don't win the lottery twice.

Argentina beat Yugoslavia and Italy in 1990.

Pk percentage goes down after teams play 120 minutes because of player fatigue. That is why when teams practice pks it is after the end of a hard practice. Some coach I respect said when he does them after practice and the first team to miss losses. Put more pressure on the players not to miss.

So the keepers starts to have more advantage when it goes to pks. Some keeper are better at it then others.

In the 1990 WC the Argentina keeper I forget his name was great stopping them. But the team was not great enough to reach the finals.

So I think a keeper who really trained to stop them has an edge.

It doesn't answer the question.