Germany put in a professional, resolute and quite simply spectacular performance as Joachim Löw’s tactical nous shined through in the 4-0 victory over Argentina. The 1954, 1974 and 1990 World Cup winners were devastating in as they defended narrowly and vigilantly against an Argentinian side who evidently lacked any real creativity as Messi was stifled throughout. The little Argentinian genius leaves the greatest International tournament without finding the back of the net, however the reliance on Messi in a 4-3-1-2 formation by Maradona was surely a burden that the Barcelona number ten didn’t need when things clearly weren’t working.

If Messi and Argentina were disappointing, Germany and Schweinsteiger were brilliant. Schweinsteiger was used as a right sided midfielder in Euro 2004 and in the World Cup four years ago, but has played most of this season as a central figure alongside Mark Van Bommel for Bayern Munich. His glorious cross field pass to Podolski, gave the Koln man a one on one opportunity to take on the hesitant Otamendi, who proceeded to foul him. From the resulting free kick Schweinsteiger right footed inswinger was met by the head of club teammate Thomas Muller, who glanced a header towards Romero and into the back of the net. In fairness the keeper should have done better and the marking for the goal highlighted the defensive frailties of a nation who hired a coach to be an inspirational figure as opposed to the more ‘finer’ details. Muller’s header was Germany’s 200th goal in World Cup competition.

Mesut Ozil was playing more as a withdrawn striker and wasn’t getting on the ball as much as he had done in previous matches, however Löw’s decision to withdraw Podolski and Muller to combat any width Argentina might get from their fullbacks Henize and Otamendi worked a treat. Germany’s lineup was more 4-4-1-1, however the philosophy remained the same, quick passing, counter attacking and patient build up. One thing we have seen at this tournament is high pressing, most noticeably from Ghana, Chile and Uruguay. This is probably due to the weather conditions being cooler than previous World Cup finals. However, Germany opted to play much deeper than they had done against England and allowed Demichelis and Burdisso time on the ball until Argentina entered the German half. This was presumably due to Argentina’s over reliance on Lionel Messi and their narrow setup. Any balls played through the middle would be met by four Germans surround Messi who was hounded at every opportunity.

Schweinsteiger’s part in Germany’s third goal was simply breathtaking as he picked the ball up on the left hand side of the pitch before gliding past one Argentinian and then wrong footing striker Higuain before pulling the ball back for Friedrich to score his first goal for Germany. At 3-0, the tie was all over, with Germany demonstrating why they are serious contenders for a fourth title. Their performance against Australia was praised, however many pundits were pointing at weak opposition as a reason for the scoreline. The games against England and Argentina demonstrated a controlled passing game and impressive movement that dragged defenders out of their normal positions. This space can then be exploited by the four key attacking players, Muller, Podolski, Ozil and Klose, with the latter two combining superbly to give Germany a 4-0 victory. Argentina were totally outclassed by a German side that mixes both youthful energy with maturity and patience.

How Germany lined up

How Argentina lined up

This entry was posted on Saturday, July 3rd, 2010 at 4:32 pm and is filed under International, South Africa 2010, South America, World Cup. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.