This morning Nationaltrainer Joachim Löw would name his 23-man squad for the European Championship qualifier against minnows Gibraltar and the friendly against reigning tournament champions Spain, and amidst the familiar names and post-injury recalls there would be yet another new
Germany v Armenia: Match Analysis and Player Ratings
The somewhat disappointing 2-2 draw with Cameroon in Mönchengladbach would put plenty of pressure on the team and coach Joachim Löw to deliver in their final match before the World Cup, and after a rather testing first half they wouldn’t
The final squad cut, Cameroon and the Maharishi Jogi.
Welcome to the first Schwarz und Weiß World Cup video blog. Nothing spectacular, no bells and whistles, no snazzy editing and fades to black, just something simple recorded using the iPhone in the bedroom. OK, I will probably use the
Germany v Cameroon: Match Analysis and Player Ratings
After a successful ten-day training camp in the South Tyrol, the squad of twenty-six players would head to Mönchengladbach via Düsseldorf for their penultimate pre-tournament friendly against fellow finalists Cameroon – the final match before the announcement of the final
The Final Twenty-Three
After all of the speculation, we now have our final squad of twenty-three – and the expected surprise. While one of the three players not making the cut would come as no great shock, the other two would generate more
More questions, no answers
It’s a pleasant afternoon in a packed Borussia-Park, and the crowd are in good voice as the two teams make their way out of the tunnel. In the absence of skipper Philipp Lahm and Miroslav Klose, Per Mertesacker takes the
The Countdown Continues…
Two days ahead of the friendly against Cameroon in Mönchengladbach, it’s time for another training group report – and finally some positive news as Joachim Löw’s squad of twenty-six go are put through their paces looking to make the final
Another man down
The squad of twenty-seven players taken to the training camp in Italy is now down to twenty-six, following the withdrawal of gritty midfielder Lars Bender thorough injury. The absence of the Bayer 04 Leverkusen defensive midfielder leaves Nationaltrainer Joachim Löw
Germany v Poland: Match Analysis and Player Ratings
Ostensibly billed as a World Cup warmup, what might have been an interesting and testing fixture for the Nationalmannschaft at Hamburg’s Imtech-Arena would be defined by the long list of absentees. With some clubs unable or unwilling to release players
A Cure for Insomnia at the Imtech
Earlier today I described the German side for this evenings meeting with Poland as a C-Elf, and it appears that Kicker Online agrees, calling tonight’s lineup a Dritte Anzug. In my last pre-match post I would name a side with
Germany C v Poland B
With a few hours to go until the friendly in Hamburg between Germany and Poland, here’s my projected line-up for what is effectively a C-Mannschaft. With the experienced Lars Bender now injured, the now-reduced squad of seventeen includes only ten
The Skeleton Squad
There is just over a month until the World Cup begins, and Germany have three warmup matches between now and their opening tournament fixture against Portugal in Salvador’s Arena Fonte Nova on 16th June. Having named his preliminary squad of