This afternoon Nationaltrainer Joachim Löw trimmed his provisional rump squad for next month’s Euro 2016 finals down to twenty-seven, with a number of new faces in the mix. As the final preparations begin with home friendlies against fellow tournament finalists
Schweinsteiger withdraws from squad following another injury
Following the exclusion earlier this week of VfL Wolfsburg striker Max Kruse from the national squad, there’s more bad news for Nationaltrainer Joachim Löw. Having just returned to full fitness after an earlier injury, it was revealed that skipper Bastian
Kruseing for a bruising
I suppose I should have called it when writing my last team preview piece ahead of the coming week’s international friendlies against England and Italy, but the squad of twenty-seven players in Jogi Löw’s squad has now been cut back
Mannschaft overcome sluggish start to overwhelm brave Gibraltar
It has been a long and at times frustrating season for the Nationalmannschaft, and the World Champions end 2015/16 with a trip to Faro in Portugal to take on group minnows Gibraltar. After the disappointing 2-1 home defeat against the
Germany v Australia: Match Analysis and Player Ratings
2015 started in slightly uncertain fashion for the Nationalmannschaft, with a hard-earned 2-2 draw against recently-crowned Asian champions Australia in Kaiserslautern. Having taken a deserved early lead Joachim Löw’s side suddenly found themselves 2-1 down and under threat of repeating
Disappointing Germany held by energetic Socceroos
There’s an interesting look to the German starting eleven for the team’s first fixture of 2015, with both skipper Bastian Schweinsteiger and ‘keeper Manuel Neuer rested with Real Madrid’s Sami Khedira taking the captain’s armband and Hanover 96’s Ron-Robert Zieler
A new year, a fresh start
2014 would end on a sound note following the hard-earned 1-0 friendly win over Spain in a damp and blustery Vigo, and 2015 starts for the Nationalmannschaft with another friendly, against Australia in Kaiserslautern. After a few days’ break the
Germany sink Spain right at the death in wet and windy Vigo
It’s a wet and windy evening on Spain’s Atlantic coast – one might call it “Fritz Walter Wetter”! This prestige friendly and Germany’s final fixture of the year sees the Nationalmannschaft and their predecessors as World Champions Spain meet for
Jogi’s 75th Neuling?
Friday’s game against Gibraltar sharpened the media focus on Germany’s current poor form, but perhaps even more worryingly it saw two more players join the already significant injury list. Both goalkeeping titan Manuel Neuer and defensive rock Jérôme Boateng were
Germany v Gibraltar: Match Analysis and Player Ratings
When your team wins 4-0, there is usually no reason to complain. Yet the reaction in Germany after their fourth game in the qualifying campaign for Euro 2016 would see plenty of consternation and more hand-wringing. The Nationalmannschaft had registered
Germany fail to ignite as they dispose of defensive Gibraltar
In perhaps the most one-sided contest since David versus Goliath – OK, Germany versus San Marino – the Nationalmannschaft take on UEFA’s newest member Gibraltar at the Grundig-Stadion – otherwise known as the Frankenstadion – in Nürnberg. After two disappointing
Tired Germany stunned by late Irish surge
A year and three days after their last meeting in Köln, Germany host the Republic of Ireland at the the Veltins-Arena in Gelsenkirchen, looking to erase the bad memories of the previous Saturday’s defeat in Poland and get their Euro