#360view: England emphasised faultlines that exist for Germany

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  • Tough night: Germany.

    As much as the statistic enhances the quality of England’s comeback in Berlin, it also illuminates the concerns Germany coach Joachim Low must have heading into Euro 2016.

    In turning a 0-2 deficit into 3-2, Roy Hodgson’s side became the first in 118 years – the German national team’s entire history – to win in Deutschland from being two goals down. Yes, it was a friendly and, yes, Germany were missing Bastian Schweinsteiger, Jerome Boateng and Ilkay Gundogan but there are some very real red flags.

    Since defeating Argentina on July 13, 2014, Germany have won 50 per cent of their matches, losing to: Argentina, Poland, USA, Republic of Ireland, France and England, plus draws with Australia and Ireland. It is telling that in these 16 post-World Cup fixtures they have kept just four clean sheets; the win over Spain, a 2-0 victory in Georgia and against Gibraltar, twice.

    Since Philipp Lahm’s retirement the back four has lacked any consistency. When Mats Hummels departed in the 46th minute at the Olympiastadion, the German defence went to pieces. Admittedly, under some intense pressure by a surprisingly dynamic and offensive England but there were alarming amounts of space exploited.

    Boateng’s return should make a difference with the centre-back back in first-team training at Bayern Munich. However, the problems clearly run deeper as the 27-year-old was on the field for the defeats in Dublin and Warsaw.

    Doubts remain over Benedikt Howedes’ fitness, Antonio Rudiger looks too error-prone while further down the line, back-ups Jonathan Tah and Matthias Ginter have less than 10 caps. There is also little time for further experimentation.

    On the flanks, Emre Can at right-back doesn’t work but Low seems intent on shoe-horning him into his team. While, the left-sided Jonas Hector has appeared nothing more than a temporary measure.

    As good a goalkeeper Manuel Neuer is, he appears to have started believing his own hype; too often he wants to dictate play. His role as sweeper-keeper is fine, as a last line of defence, but hubris dictates he’s a few touches away from a Rene Higuita at Italia 90-style moment.

    The Schweinsteiger situation is also a problem. When fit, irrespective of form, he is Low’s captain and general but since Brazil 2014 he’s been beset by knee problems and looks incapable of being relied upon over a tournament.

    With so much talent at the base of midfield – Toni Kroos, Sami Khedira, Gundogan, Can, Christoph Kramer, Sven and Lars Bender, Johannes Geis – it’s now time to move on, yet Low keeps faith. The nagging suspicion is that, Khedira aside,the others lack the presence and character of Schweinsteiger.

    Further forward, ideally, Low would want Mario Gotze in the false nine with Thomas Muller behind him. A perfect situation as they are club-mates at Bayern. But Gotze has started just seven games this term and his status under Pep Guardiola means that figure is unlikely to be added to before June.

    In the Bundesliga, outside of Muller, the top scoring German strikers are: 33-year-old Alexander Meier with 12, Sandro Wagner of Darmstadt on 11 and Monchengladbach’s Lars Stindl with seven. All three have never been selected for Die Mannschaft while Low’s other realistic option, Wolfburg’s Max Kruse, has a raft of personal issues. Hence the return of Mario Gomez, whose header to make it 2-0 was probably enough to book his seat, given the lack of competition.

    There still remains huge quality in this squad, and Germany often reserve their best for tournaments but Low has serious work to do if he is to replicate the feats of Spain.

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