So, after the impressions of the Confed Cup who are currently the most likely players to be picked by Klinsmann for the WC squad (23 players)? Goal: Kahn, Lehmann + 1 of Hildebrand, Weidenfeller, Wiese, Rost, Enke, Jentzsch CB: Wörns + 3 of Mertesacker, Huth, Metzelder, Friedrich RB: 2 of Friedrich, Hinkel, Owomoyela, Görlitz, Schneider LB: Lahm + 1 of Pander, Jansen, Schulz, Hitzlesperger, Schneider RM: 2 of Schneider, Deisler, Borowski, Freier LM: Schweinsteiger + 1 of Ernst, Hitzlesperger, Jansen DM: Frings + 1 of Hamann, Kehl, Ernst OM: Ballack FW: Podolski, Klose, Kuranyi, Asamoah + 1 of Hanke, Lauth, Neuville, Brdaric IIRC Klinsmann has announced that he plans to double every position so I've generally tried to follow this requirement. I think he will take five and not four forwards so I've not doubled Ballack's position in offensive midfield. Schneider and Ernst are among the "secure" players, the question is for which position they will primarily be nominated. If Schneider is nominated in RM it may mean that Borowski will miss out on the squad. If Ernst is nominated in DM both Hamann and Kehl may miss out in favor of Hitlesperger in LM which would be a bad decision IMO. Comments?
If I'm correct, (and I'm not sure if I am) but you are allowed to bring 23 to the World Cup. WC 2002 it was 23 anyways. So here would be my 23: GK: Kahn, Lehmann, Hildebrand RWB: Friedrich, Hinkel CB: Woerns, Huth, Mertesacker, Metzi (if healthy, if not, shucks we're screwed, Nowotny, but he's in the same boat as Metzi...maybe Baumann ) LWB: Lahm, Hitzlsperger DM: Ernst, Frings, Hamann RM: Schneider, Deisler LM: Schweinsteiger OM: Ballack ST: Klose, Kuranyi, Podolski, Asamoah, Lauth/Hanke Hitzlsperger can play LM too, Deisler can play OM, Hinkel and Asamoah can play RM. But its way too soon to speculate. This is based on info from this season. Who knows who may bomb this year or get injured, and Lahm and Metzi and Klose HAVE to recover from their injuries, they are all key.
My Picks would be as follows: Goal: Kahn, Lehmann, Weidenfeller / Enke CB: Wörns, Mertesacker, Metzelder, Friedrich RB: Hinkel, Görlitz LB: Lahm, Pander RM: Deisler, Freier LM: Schweinsteiger, Schneider DM: Hamann, Ernst OM: Ballack FW: Podolski, Klose, Asamoah, Hanke, Lauth This is obviously pending injury recovery of several players. Starters in bold...Note: Deisler, Freier and Podolski can understudy for Ballack in case of injury / suspension.
I don't know if Hanke is a sure bet yet... A lot will hinge on this season, I'm counting on Huth and Borrowski as well as Hanke to have a great season so they can stay in the squad.
This is what I think. Two players on each position (except goal): Goal: Kahn Hildebrandt Lehmann RB: Friedrich Hinkel CB: Metzelder Mertesacker Huth Wörns/Babbel LB: Lahm Pander Defensive Midfield: Frings Ernst Right Midfield: Deisler Schneider Left Midfield: Schweinsteiger Hitzlsperger Central Midfield: Ballack Scholl (now this is me wishing, but he would make a perfect sub) Strikers: Podolski Kuranyi Klose Lauth/Asamoah/Hanke
I believe Klose, Kuranyi, Podolski and Asamoah are sure bets barring injury. Hanke was probably ahead of Brdaric, Lauth and Neuville before he got red carded against Mexico. If he gets banned for more than one game he may really be in trouble, though, because he will be of limited use to Klinsmann in the WC. Moreover, Hanke may actually struggle in Wolfsburg because he may have to compete with Klimowicz for the central striker spot. I'm still sceptical about Hanke anyway. He is strong in the air and has good instincts in front of goal, but he is also slow and doesn't combine well. His first touch isn't all that, either.
I'm a big fan of Freier, well not that big but I think he's good. 3-5-2 is unlikely but perhaps it might look like this: Goal: Kahn, Lehmann, Hilderbrand SW/DM: Kehl CB: Mertesacker, Metzelder, Friedrich, Huth RwB: Hinkel, Görlitz LwB: Lahm, Schulz RM: Deisler, Freier LM: Schweinsteiger, Hitzlsperger DM: Frings, Ernst AM: Ballack FW: Podolski, Klose, Kuranyi, Asamoah -------------------------------Kahn -------------------------------Kehl ----------------Metzelder------Mertesacker------Friedrich ---Hinkel-------------------------------------------------Lahm --------------------------Frings-------Ernst -----------------------------Ballack -----------------------Podolski----Kuranyi
I think that Kehl deserves a chance, but definitely not as a Sweeper... But I think he should replace Frings or Ernst, I think he is a better defender than either of them. Where would Schweinsteiger be in this lineup? I think he should be put to the left wing of Ballack, and have Lahm make overlapping runs to the side. Germany needs to have Schweinsteiger's attacking instincts and flair, otherwise, Germany is about as bland as a potato. Friedrich has shown he is the best RWB...unfortunately for Hinkel, that means a place on the bench, unless Germany decide to play diamond midfield, and he could replace Frings or Ernst as a RM like this: ----------Frings/Ernst---------- Hinkel------------------Schweinsteiger ------------Ballack------------- Oh yea, and to defuse any talk of me being hyprocritical, I want to replace Hamann in my German WC lineup with Kehl.
Yer the reason I put that 3-5-2 is coz I think our defence isn't very good, and perhaps playing 2 DMs would fix things up??? But yer without Schweini things get a bit stale. Your diamond formation looks neat too, that'll be good.
kahn has a point: ".. aber Kahn warnt: "So kommen wir nicht ins Finale" Heftig kritisiert der Nationaltorhüter die offensive Spielweise der deutschen Mannschaft von Ralf Köttker und Lars Gartenschläger Leipzig - Unterschiedlicher hätte das Spiel kaum bewertet werden können. Nach dem 4:3 gegen Mexiko erschien auf dem Flachbildschirm in den Katakomben des Leipziger Zentralstadions ein gutgelaunter Jürgen Klinsmann, der ein paar Etagen höher in der Pressekonferenz auf die drei Gegentore und die Laune seines Torhüters angesprochen wurde. "Ich habe nach dem Schlußpfiff mit dem Oliver Kahn gescherzt, und er ist genauso begeistert wie wir von der Entwicklung der Mannschaft", sagte der Bundestrainer. Daß der Torwart diese Einschätzung ganz und gar nicht teilte, war seinem Gesicht deutlich anzusehen. Einige Meter neben dem Fernsehschirm mit den Livebildern des lächelnden Bundestrainers Klinsmann stand Kahn, der in etwa so zufrieden aussah wie nach dem 0:2 gegen Brasilien im Finale der Weltmeisterschaft 2002, in dem ihm ein kapitaler Fehler unterlaufen war. "Ich kann mich hier nicht hinstellen und sagen, daß ich begeistert bin. Wenn ich sehe, was wir für Fehler machen, muß ich teilweise schon lachen. Das ist haarsträubend", sagte der Profi vom FC Bayern München. Während Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder, der Präsident des Deutschen Fußball-Bundes, vor den Kameras von der "beeindruckenden Mannschaftsleistung" schwärmte und Assistenztrainer Joachim Löw immer noch vom hohen Unterhaltungswert der Partie ("Das Spiel hatte alles") fasziniert war, hatte Kahn schlechte Laune - und das dringende Bedürfnis, sein Fazit zu ziehen. Die Begeisterung für den Offensivfußball seiner Kollegen verstand der 36jährige nicht. "Es geht bei uns immer munter nach vorn, wir spielen ständig hohes Tempo. Aber die Balance zwischen Offensive und Defensive stimmt nicht. Wie spielen fast schon Kamikaze", sagte Kahn und schüttelte den Kopf: "Dieser Konföderationen-Pokal stand wohl unter dem Motto der totalen Offensive." Zweimal hatte die derzeitige Nummer eins während des Turniers im Tor gestanden und sowohl beim 4:3 gegen Australien als auch gegen Mexiko jeweils drei Treffer kassiert. Abgesehen von seinem Frust und dem aufgestauten Ärger über die Rotation der deutschen Torhüter sorgen Kahn die permanenten Probleme der Abwehr. "Jetzt wird alles durch die große Euphorie überdeckt. Aber ich weiß, wie man bis zum letzten Punkt erfolgreich ist. So nicht!" Kahn kritisiert vor allem die vielen Ballverluste und die Abstimmungsprobleme in der Defensivarbeit, die in den fünf Turnierspielen zu elf Gegentoren führten. Der erfahrenste deutsche Nationalspieler weiß, daß die Gegner im kommenden Jahr taktisch viel disziplinierter spielen werden und es weniger Gelegenheiten geben wird, Rückstände auszugleichen. "Wir werden nicht immer 4:3 gewinnen, weil irgendwann nicht mehr Konföderationen-Pokal ist, sondern WM", warnt Kahn. "Und so wird uns der Weg nicht ins Finale führen." Artikel erschienen am Fre, 1. Juli 2005
Hasse dieses scheiß gelaber, wenn hätte, könnte. Wenn Hotte Köhler heute Kanzler wär dann wär er Kabzler. Isser aber nich, und Deutschland geht unter. Aber die die 11 Recken leisteten gute Dienste, sehr gut, um von dem Thema abzulenken. Das soll die Leistung niemals schmälern, die haben echt Weltklasse gespielt. Leider haben sie nicht die Schiris auf Ihrer Seite gehabt. Kommt noch. Und die Abwehr war nicht 1a, kommt noch. Aber sonst seh ich mit Freude voraus.
There is more depth to our options than I thought. I hope Klinsman picks those few right people though out of the many that he has to select out of and doesn't waste his picks.
Pile is right, although i hate to admit it Talking is cheap as we germans say We hav almost a full year to WC2006 We don't know who is fit till then, we don't know who Klinsi will call And Kahn is nothing like a whining bitch who should step back. The media protects his lousy bavarian "stümper"-butt but he clearly made a lots of errors against Australia. He just blames Huth und Mertesacker instead like a men saying that he made mistakes as well Like Poldi said: They win and loose as a TEAM ... Kahn is just an arrogant soab.... not a teamplayer. This confed club surely showed one thing: Together they stand, divided they fall and with Khan they clearly fall
defense wins tournaments though lets just hope metzelder gets fit http://www.kicker.de/content/news/a...liga=1&saison=2005/06&spieltag=1&gruppe=16904
That phrase doesn't count anymore, otherwise Mexico would have won Confed Cup (Best defense .. only germany made 4 goals against em) A good mix of offense and defense wins tournaments But protecting our goalies (especially the gorillalike one) to justify our third place is lame. Kahn made mistakes at every goal vs. Australia. He just blames the defense (of which the goalie is part) A goalkeeper is the last line of defense , he is not ABOVE defense, as Kahn thinks he is Instead of giving great speeches he should step down ... he is a shadow of his former self, and only his arrogancy keeps him from realizing it.
is there no chance for kringe to make it come world cup time? he had a pretty good season @ LW, didnt he? GK: timo, kahn, roman RB: hinkel, owomoyela LB: lahm, pander CB: mertesecker, metzelder, huth, friedrich DM: hamann, ernst RM: deisler, schneider LM: schweini, kringe CM: ballack, frings FW: poldi, lauth, hanke, kuranyi damn, its hard to leave out the players i did... but this competition is good!!!
Two interesting articles dealing with the WC sqad: Kicker Article The Kicker figures that the starting 11 looks so at the moment: Kahn - Friedrich, Wörns, Mertesacker, Lahm - Schneider, Frings, Ballack, Schweinsteiger - Kuranyi, Podolski Sport1 Article Löw says Lahm is the ideal solution for the left back spot, but perhaps more interestingly he seems to have reservations about Hitzlesperger at left back and mentions Pander and Jansen as alternatives. Löw also rates Schneider in midfield highly. Klinsmann is quoted as saying that four -- of five or even six! -- forward spots are as good as secure with Klose, Podolski, Asamoah and Kuranyi.
Klinsi will do the right thing, but I would choose Lehmann in goal right now. Goal: Lehmann, Kahn, Weidenfeller LB: Lahm, Janssen CB: Woerns, Metzelder, Mertesacker, Huth RB: Friedrich, Hinkel DM: Hamann, Frings LM: Schweinsteiger, Ernst RM: Deisler, Schneider CM: Ballack FW: Podolski, Klose, Asamoah, Hanke, Kuranyi Van Marwijk (Dortmund) said he will let Woerns and Metzelder play together in the central defense this season. It will be very good to have both in the NT at this position too. Hamann wil be very interesting when he comes back. I hve no doubt he will deliver. The CL win and his great contribution to it, will give him a huge boost in confidence. Schweini, Deisler and Ballack will play together at Bayern, this will make the offense even better. Podolski and Klose should fit together perfectly. Klose with his headers and his work rate and Podolski with his passes and his shots.
I agree, I think Metzelder and Klose are KEY for the German revival...w/out them, I don't think Germany is complete. I like Klose, he is not the prototypical clinical striker with speed, but he works hard and he has a damn good header. Metzelder needs to be fit, he's the prototypical modern defender, much like Friedrich, good in the air, fast, reads the game well.
Agree with you ^ there buddy. Metzelder and Woerms partnership would be great since they have so much playing time together at BVB, like the Bayern midfield. I'm not going to say anything about the GK situation or Kahn's statements, I'll just wait and see what happens this season. I don't want to be overly critical a year before the WC and before such a vital year of club football for our German players.
i agree to everything especially metzelder - woerns combo i believwe in blockbildung but lehmann i prefer kahn
My favorite team would be: GK: Kahn, Hildebrand, Wiese Defense: Friedrich, Lahm, Jansen, Hinkel, Mertesacker, Huth, Metzelder, Pander Midfield: Deisler, Schweinsteiger, Ballack, Schneider, Ernst, Frings Offense: Klose, Kuranyi, Podolski, Asamoah, Lauth +one shootingstar First squad: ----------------------Wiese------------------------- Lahm------Mertesacker-------Metzelder--------Jansen ----------------------Ernst-------------------------- ------Schneider-------------------Ballack------------ ---------------Deisler-----Schweinsteiger------------ ---------------------------Podolski------------------
My team: Goal: Kahn, Lehmann, Hilderbrand/Weidenfeller Def: Mertesacker, Metzelder, Friedrich, Huth, Hinkel, Woerns, Lahm, Pander Mid: Deisler, Schneider, Schweinsteiger, Kehl/Hamann, Frings, Ernst, Ballack FW: Podolski, Klose, Kuranyi, Lauth/Asamoah/Hanke -------------------------------Kahn ---------------------Metzelder------Mertesacker ---Hinkel-------------------------------------------------Lahm -----------------Deisler-------?????--------Schweinsteiger -----------------------------Ballack -----------------------Podolski----Klose There are a few places in the team that can change over the next year. In the defense, Huth has proved to be inexperienced, clusmy with tackles, and a liability in the back. He is going to have to drastically improve this season with Chelsea (which means getting a few games first) to even find himself on the team next year. I would much rather have Woerns in there backing up Mertesacker and Metzelder. Of course, this is all hinging on Metzelder's recovery and return to form. Huth might find himself on the team by default just because of the lack of depth in central defense. Right back is still up for grabs, although I think Friedrich has the advantage right now as he is a bit better defensively than Hinkel. Owomoyela will have to prove his class with Bremen this year, because he hasn't done so in his recent international games. Left back is securely in Lahm's hands. Hitzelsperger was infuriately bad in the Confed Cup, and I don't see a reason to have him in the squad (he has no chance of gaining a spot in midfield). Pander is there just to back up Lahm. The midfield is by far the most talented part of the squad and has to largest pool of players to pick from. There are going to be a lot of quality midfielders missing out on a place in Germany '06. Kehl, Hamann, and Borowski are proven players that may not make it into the squad. I would like either Kehl or Hamann to be added to the squad. They could possibly fill into the ???? spot in the midfield. Neither Frings nor Ernst is a bona fide defensive midfielder, and with Germany's defensive frailties exposed at the Confed Cup, I think either Kehl or Hamann is needed to shore up the defense. Although Kehl has failed to impress as an international in the past, he had a superb season last year, and if he plays well again this year, there is no reason not to include him. Hamann has proved his class for years with Liverpool, and I think his is still one of the top five defensive midfielders in the world. The other three midfield place are pretty secure. Ballack is a no-brainer. Schweinsteiger deserves a starting spot down the left. He and Podolski have found a very nice connection down that side, and Schweinsteiger qualities to the table that nobody else on the team possesses. He is also an extremely hard worker, something that players with his flair and trickery do not normally exhibit. Deisler also played well throughout the Confed Cup, and he is also deserving of a starting place. His crosses are unlike any I've seen, whipped in with swerve, pace, and precision. I think with more forward ventures from Ballack and Klose's recovery and inclusion into the team, more of his crosses will find his teammates' heads. The forwards, I think, are the trickiest part of the team to gauge at the moment. Podolski has found a sintillating vain of form, and at his present pace, he will be Germany's star striker at the World Cup. The other striking spot will be wide open. Kuranyi hasn't played particularly well lately, and he has some worrying qualities. I find that he is too frail to play as a target man/center forward, and his first touch lets him down too many times. Asamoah is a fierce competitor, although he lacks the class of some of his counterparts. Klose has been injured, but he had a very good 2004/2005 season for Bremen, and I think he complements Podolski very well. Lauth has suffered through various long term injuries, but he is still young, and he has tremendous potential. Hanke will get his chance to shine at Wolfsburg this season, and although Wolfsburg maybe wasn't the best choice for him, he will still be able to play more regularly than at Schalke. He seems to be the most complete forward, in terms of strength, speed, agility, aerial play, and finishing. However, he is less refined the the others, and he will have to show what he's made of this season. There are other younger players who have caught my eye as future national team players, but I doubt they would be ready for the World Cup. Troichowski at Hamburg, Kringe in Dortmund, and Delura (can't remember if he's still at Schalke or if he signed somewhere else). Even younger, Hunt at Bremen made a good impression in the second half of last season. Kruska at Dortmund played well in his few oppertunities in the Dortmund midfield. There are others, but this topic can probably be discussed somewhere else. Maybe there should be a Young Players topic or something. Anyway, that's my impression of the national team situation. It's definitely moving the right direction, and if our key players are all healthy (including Metzelder and Lahm) and in form for the World Cup, I think we have as good a shot as any. I guess that's it. Most of you probably won't read that much. I just haven't posted here in a while, and had a few things to get off my chest. Tschau.