wrote:

@mad,
Germany has theoretically the quality ofc. But it is also the youngest German team ever. It's the lack of international experience, not the lack of quality.

@mad and mirc
we have with Özil, Kroos, Schweinsteiger, Khedira and Müller probably the most talentet german midfild ever. But the only with real experience is Schweinsteiger

@mad
The only skills which will be missed from ballack are his "leading"-skills and his eye for the game. Khedira will replace him well as player and Schweinsteiger will compense most of his leading skills. Patchwork

Further i don't see a problem in the offense with Klose and Cacau. I c a lack in the defense. Badstuber is a hopefull talent, but he just did his first season. Ofc, he reached the CL-Final, played against big players there. But still, he is not as calm as he appears.

I think similarly to Mirc in regard to the German team - it's more of a "collective" than a team built around extremely talented individuals. The only difference is i don't think they've got what it takes - namely, i don't think it's a collective as tight as Greece circa '04.

Not to say i think Germany doesn't have any talent - on the contrary, i think it's one of the best teams in the world. Just not quite good enough to win.

I wouldn't downplay the loss of Ballack either, it is a serious blow. While you're right that the two mentioned players can replace him, it's already two people that have to do the job he did alone. Also, i think he is a better playmaker than either and has more charisma than Schweinsteiger. Plus, he always brings a fair amount of flair, cunning and experience with him. If he played, i'd give Germany more chances for the final success.

That being said, i really don't think Germany has a weak point in their squad, i just think they don't have the edge in a star individual that can win a game almost by himself (think Messi, Rooney, Ronaldo).

I love being surprised in big tourneys though, if the clear favourites always won, it would be boring.

Finally a decent match. Gj Germany - prepare to be spanked in the second round if England finish second in their group.

I can't stand those vuvuzelas - constant "beeee" sound pisses me off. So much for the crowd being influential in this tournament... you can hardly hear them sing.