First friendly of the year: Italy v. Germany 3/1/06 [multiple R's]

[F96]

Also, I must add that Woerns should have no place in the Nationalelf, and the fact that he stated that he is the best back in the BL right now is quite funny. The guy is like a traffic cone...he is so slow other players make it look like he is standing still. Your time has come and passed...You had your opportunity to shine when you were younger and you f'ed it up against Croatia in '98. You are not forgiven...please go quietly back into your role as an average player on an average BL team...

The thing is, right now he is one of the best backs in the Bundesliga and that says all about the quality of the league!

["Eisenfuß" Eilts]

The thing is, right now he is one of the best backs in the Bundesliga and that says all about the quality of the league!

The league is not bad.

But the thing is, that the best defenders aren´t German,
e.g. Lucio, who could play in every team world-wide.

Woerns is also none bad player, but the thing is, that he doesn´t fit IMO
into Klinsmann´s system and Klinsmann judge it the same way.
He can play well under Van Marwijks system,
because Dortmund plays more compact than Germany,
when the opponent team has the ball,
but at Klinsmann´s system he can´t show his strengths (tackling , ...)
and the opponents can use his weak points against him.

[Bayerntone]

Woerns was given his chance to play against Slovakia last year:

http://www.dfb.de/dfb-team/nationalteam/statistik/index.html

but he did not play well.

[Herr Wolf]

Thank you fellow Mannschaft fans who think Huth does not fit the standard for the German National Team. Huth is too slow and oafy. He will get carved by the likes of players like Ronaldinho, Messi, Kaka, or Riquelme. He is a weak link when we play faster, flair oriented teams. I prefer Worns or Metzelder to Huth, at right back I prefer Freidrich over Owemoyela, who I also think isn't up to the standard of the Mannschaft. I like Christian Schulz, I think he should get a chance at right or left back. In the midfield it should be Schneider, Ballack, Borowski, and Schweinsteiger. In the striker position, I prefer Klose and Podolski up front, but if Oliver Neuville can prove himself again he should get another shot.

[Mehr]

I agree with many of you that Kehl needs to be in this team. His position is exactly what we need, Ernst has shown that he is not good enough at this level time and again. Also, lets not forget that Kehl is capable of playing CB which is a major problem right now.

I agree Worns is past it, we dont need him nor Huth for that matter who I find extremely clumsy and error prone.

There is a player that is not being mentioned who deserves to be called up. This is Fahrenhorst at Bremen. He is starting again, in great form and playing champions league against teams like Juventus. Not to mention he has the experience.

Another option is M. Friedrich at Mainz but he would be someone I would look at after the WC.

What do you guys think of Fahrenhorst?

[prymetyme]

Does anyone know what channel this will be on on PPlive? or if it will be able on some american television or if it will be online somewhere?

[The Old Lady Hertha]

The US game is on ESPN Dos...erm Italy game...good luck with that no idea.

[prymetyme]

The England match is On FSC, maybe it will be on PPV

[The Old Lady Hertha]

The England match is On FSC, maybe it will be on PPV

Since I am too poor for PPLive, I guess no go for me. :(

[Jaison]

Since I am too poor for PPLive, I guess no go for me. :(

PPLive is free! :cool:

[The Old Lady Hertha]

PPLive is free! :cool:

Hmm maybe I should d/l it... thanks

I have SopCast, is that the same?

[Jaison]

Hmm maybe I should d/l it... thanks

I have SopCast, is that the same?

Yeah, it's almost the same thing.

[balla_basti]

any idea which TV channels this game gonna be on? If its on RAI which usually airs most Italian home games, i will be able to watch it.

[The Old Lady Hertha]

According to kicker, Metzelder will start, as will Lehmann.

[prymetyme]

So since were less the 24 hours away from kick off, does anyone have any predictions for the match?

[Jaison]

So since were less the 24 hours away from kick off, does anyone have any predictions for the match?


Italy - Germany: 4:3 AET

Goals: 1:0 Boninsegna (7.), 1:1 Schnellinger (90.), 1:2 Müller (95.), 2:2 Burgnich (99.), 3:2 Riva (104.), 3:3 Müller (109.), 4:3 Rivera (111.)

:D

Alright.. I'll make it current...

Italy-Germany: 3:4

Goals: 1:0 Gilardino, 1:1 Schweinsteiger, 1:2 Klose, 2:2 Toni, 3:2 Del Piero, 3:3 Klose, 3:4 Podolski

We could have a Jahrhundertspiel for the new century! :cool:

:D

[prymetyme]

3-1 Germany

1:0 Klose, 2:0 Schweinsteiger, 2:1 Cassano, 3:1 Lukas Podolski

[SirManchester]

Germany has to step up their defense in this game, but I doubt it will happen and Klinsman's side will see at least two goals conceded. This is also the game where we have to show that we can attack consistently, and should be able to score no less than two goals past their defense (which is very good).

Ballack will get on the scoresheet, that's the only sure thing I can tell ya.

[MountainGoats]

Kehl and Woerns MUST be in the squad. Metzelder has been displaced by Brzenska at BVB and isn't getting any playing time at the moment. I'm not saying that Metzelder shouldn't be in the squad, but we need some more experience in the back. Mertesacker is currently our most talented center back (with Metzelder still regaining form), but Woerns has been a consistent performer in the Bundesliga this season, and he certainly deserves a spot over Huth. It is baffling that Huth is still being nominated. He has almost NO experience at the club level, and he is going to be in the world cup squad. It is downright lunacy.

Kehl is Germany's only real option at the defensive midfield spot. Baumann gets it done for Bremen but is not international material. This German team NEEDS a solid defensive midfielder because of our transparent defensive frailties. Kehl has been one of the guiding forces in a very inexperienced BVB side. And he is certainly talented. Not too long ago when he was a libero at Freiburg, he was being hailed as the new Beckenbauer. Even if that was a bit of an overstatement, he is still a quality defensive midfielder with good distributive qualities and a nose winning the ball.

Concerning the Italy game, I think we should use Frings as a defensive midfielder, even though that is not his natural position. He is in great form at the moment, and should be playing. Borowski should play on the left. Unlike Schweinsteiger (who I think will be a future German star), he can actually cross the ball with his left foot. He is pacy for a big guy, has an extremely powerful shot, and has proved his quality this year with Bremen. Deisler on the right should really be a no-brainer right now, and of course, Ballack in the whole.

Up top, Klose is a no-brainer. In my eyes, when he is fully fit, he is far and away the best striker in the Bundesliga. It still amazes me how much he has progressed since he moved to Bremen. He is not just a center forward with a powerful header anymore. He is powerful, pacy, techniquely gifted, and a supreme goal scorer. Klose has really become a quality striker. Podolski, on the other hand, really needs to step up his game. He has slumped so badly in recent weeks that they are threatening to bench him in Koeln. He needs to get some fire in his belly, because with all of his talent, he should set the Bundesliga alight. That being said, I still think he is the ideal partner for Klose up front.

I am a bit suprised that Kuranyi was left out of the squad. He has been in good form in recent weeks. Granted, before that, Schalke had a bad spell and Kuranyi suffered, but he is still a Nationalmannschaft-caliber striker. And he is certainly better than Asamoah.

Metzelder and Mertesacker will probably start as center backs, which is a good decision, because they needs to form a partnership, as they are clearly the most talented center backs in Germany. Hopefully Metzelder can regain his 2003 form, or something close to it. On the flanks, I am inclined to move Lahm on the right side, because of our relative lack of quality right backs. Owomoyela is currently our best, and I wouldn't be disappointed if he started, but I would rather see Lahm on the right, and Jansen on the left, as they are our two best options on the flanks.

Overall, this team should pull out a result against the Italians. They are missing Gattuso, Vieri, and Totti, so they might lack some firepower. I'm expecting a 2-1 scoreline. Ballack and Klose for Germany, Pirlo for Italy.

And by the way, this was my first post here. I've been browsing the forums for a while, and I decided I need to register to vent some of my built-up soccer dilemmas.

[Jaison]

Welcome to our board!

Good analysis, and I agree with what you say.
The Lahm/Jansen RB/LB combo could work well, though I envision Jansen playing a more offensive role like recently with 'Gladbach. Moritz Volz has been playing solidly this year, and I'm surprised Klinsi never took a closer look with him during the fall/winter 2005 friendlies.

As for Frings, while he should be our DM with what Klinsi has chosen for his lineup (although Ernst's form has been picking up, his NT performances have been underwhelming), it's still the incorrect use of his talents. Still, the RM position is one of our deepest with Deisler, Frings, Schneider (who's also had a very good year), and Schweini all capable of playing well at that position. It's frustrating having that sort of imbalance of depth (vs. DM and CB for example), but we have to live with it for now.