Non contenders (Germany National Football Team)

Name: Zmugzy

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Product:	Germany National Football Team
Date:	09/06/06 (92 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Home advantage

Disadvantages: Lack of competition

Will Germany win the World Cup for the first time in their history? West Germany won the cup three times (1954, 1974 and 1990) but as the unified Germany they only reached the final in 2002 for the first time only to be beaten by Brazil. So in fact it is true to say that England have won the World Cup more times than Germany.

As the host nation in this tournament they no doubt have some advantage. It was thirty-two years ago that West Germany became the fourth nation to win the cup on home soil. So far six nations have made the same achievement, the most recent being Argentina in 1978 and France in 1998.

The present Germany team have not looked all that convincing so far during the run up to this tournament. There has been a lack of goals up front and the defence has not looked all that solid. Earlier this year they were hammered 4:1 in a friendly against Italy. Nevertheless, the West German sides of the past had a tremendous success rate at World Cup tournaments. Between 1966 and 1990 they reached the final five times. And their arrival in the final of 2002 came just nine months after the famous 5:1 defeat to England in the qualifiers.

Jurgen Klinsmann, the present team coach, has said that he would love to emulate Franz Beckenbauer and lift the World Cup as both a player and manager. One advantage that perhaps Germany do have is that all their players play football in their own country. Klinsmann’s team is built around the midfield talent of Michael Ballack. He is likely to be accompanied by Torsten Frings of Werder Bremen, Bastian Schweinsteiger of Bayern Munich and former Aston Villa player Thomas Hitzlsperger. Miroslav Klose who will lead Germany's attack, only played 11 minutes as a substitute during Euro 2004 and never scored a goal. However, he scored 25 league goals whilst playing for Werder Bremen last season and is in very good form. Lukas Podolski will probably play as a striker alongside him up front and they both should pose considerable question for opposition defences.

A major disadvantage the Germans have is their lack of competitive football. Their last competitive match was played in the European Championships when they were eliminated in the first round. However, with their home advantage they should as usual manage to get comfortably through the first group stage. But their lack of competition and perhaps a little too much over reliance on Ballack could be their downfall.

Summary: Lack of competition will outway home advantage