For those who watched the match between Germany and Mexico last night, perhaps the performances of the defending champions are unacceptable. Struggling attack, loose defense. As a result, they received bitter fruit at the opening match.
Actually a failure is not the end of the world. Spain started the 2010 World Cup with a defeat, so they ... wins with a minimum distance and championship. Just the way that Germany lost a lot of thought. Why is a team with many talents, led by a coach who understands his players like that, plays a complicated football game and has no cohesion.
Let's try to find the answer, try to dig up each issue to see how deep can lead to the status quo.
The first is the starting lineup. Germany came out with a 4-2-3-1 formation. The Plattenhardt-Hummels-Boateng-Kimmich quad, Kroos-Khedira center midfielders, Draxler-Muller winger, Ozil striker and Werner striker.
Skip the left wing, where there are not many noteworthy situations, right wing is where the problem occurs. In terms of the idea we can see Low using Muller to hold on to the wing, Kimmich will rise to the ground and behind Khedira will act as a cover when needed. In theory this is a bad option. Muller and Kimmich are so used to working in Bayern Munich, and behind them are just Khedira instead of Vidal. Khedira by his experience can also be called reliable. Unfortunately, that is not true.
Last season, both Muller and Khedira were not in good form at the club shirt, and then on the recruitment, they continue to show such disappointing face. Often, in a battle of the opponent, the combination of these three factors, including attack and defense, is very important. But the lack of link brought about the break.
Muller clinging to the superficial to force Kimmich to give too high, leaving the gap behind immense. Khedira is too old to be able to match the counterattack situations of the opponent, not to mention some situations Juventus midfielder left the position to enter the penalty area.
Coach Juan Carlos Osorio for Lozano, a young, rich name clinging to the left side of Mexico. And he, not Chicharito, was Mexico's main attacking head in the first 45 minutes. Every time Mexico catches the ball, the ball will be taken to Vela's leg. No. 11 with Chicharito will put pressure on the central defender. Then the left wing is Lozano alone accelerated from the home side straight up the penalty area.
One of them became the goal. And in this situation, the man who ran against Lozano was ... Ozil. Where was Khedira and Kimmich? Khedira is the loser and is in contention with the referee. While Kimmich was a dozen meters away from Lozano. And Muller, maybe he did not even realize he would run when both of his teammates were ... taller than him. The hole is so big, drilled so much. No wonder Mexico scored.
Second, Low recognized this weakness. For the first 15 minutes, Khedira was out of position. But that was not enough, Low has changed personnel.
Actually trying to reinforce Khedira is not that difficult, Low can use Gundogan or Goretzka. The problem is Germany is being led ahead. And Low wanted three points in the opening game, he had Marco Reus on. This choice will solve two problems. First, increase the surge on the work. Second, Reus will stick to Kimmich need not be too high. And along with Boateng, Kimmich can handle the counterattack lightning of the opponent.
Juan Carlos Osorio is no longer eager to kill the other. He left Vela for the break and replaced defender Edson Alvarez. Mexico play low net safety. Germany put pressure on the play and also when the troubles appear.
Marco Reus in the field, so Muller will play in the position? He clung to the center but was also lost in the midst of the defenders of Mexico. This inadvertently alarmed Werner, who from the beginning did not link well with teammates. The cramped space, to avoid the position of Muller, so that the more he moved around unknowingly. The ball does not have a specific destination.In return, the top three attacking midfielders are Ozil, Draxler and Marco Reus. They are smart players and many ideas. But the problem is ... each person has an idea and no common denominator. Reus and Draxler are two-winged, trying to use penetrating and cross-hatching phases, and people rely on individual efforts. Ozil is like a surplus character on the field when he does not know what to do. And the poor one is probably Kroos. He carried the role of attacking but did not know where to go between the confusion around the penalty area. So he decided to cut himself when there was a chance. Then he became the most experienced player in the game, which is hard to see at Real Madrid.
Mario Gomez also only improved the air combat. Brandt was the only alternative when Werner was injured. Low is clearly wrong in the beginning and the behind developments are just the result.
It is hard to say that Germany has no other lessons. They have many talents. Joachim Low is not the only one who knows how to use one of two "moves." But when they did not, the friendly was never "the strength" of Die Mannschaft. Look at the qualifying rounds, 10 new wins are the true strength of the German team.
It can be said that Joachim Low made the same mistake Argentine Sampaoli a day ago, subjectivity. He launched a not-so-negligible squad, an old formula that followed his many major tournaments. It felt like he replaced Klose with Werner, Schweinsteiger with Kroos, Kroos with Ozil, Ozil with Draxler, Lahm with Kimmich. So is the old formula to help him win the 2014 World Cup, only this material is filled with other materials. That's all.
It is possible that he also knows but has ignored that time has brought change. Khedira's strength is not the same now. Muller is no longer in the form of a day. Werner not Klose just "shake his head" is a goal. And Kimmich is not Lahm to know when to work, when need to defend.
And this "ignore" has brought a disappointing opening game. From one small mistake, one draws from one consequence to another. Like the butterfly effect. In the end, before we are a German team is not finished but the hand is bad.
It's a lot to do, that's what we thought and it made us think about their performances.
But Germany is still Germany, just Joachim Low's other arrangements will change. Fans can rest assured that.
