What Bettors Need To Know: Germany vs. England
By MICHAEL DA SILVA
Germany (+105) vs. England (+135, 2.5)
On Sunday, England and Germany renew what is one on soccer’s great rivalries.
England famously beat West Germany in the World Cup final of 1966, but it has been tit-for-tat ever since, with Germany edging out England on penalties more times than the English would like to remember.
England have promised to really go for it so, given the attacking players on show, goals would appear to be on the menu.
Game strategy
Since England defeated Slovenia (and their demons) to clinch qualification, they seem to have recaptured the spirit they lost after ties with the United States and Algeria. Confidence in the England camp is high.
“I think we're a better team than Germany,” said reinstated No. 1 David James Friday. “We played them in Berlin and beat them 2-1 in a game which we should have won more comfortably. They're a strong side, ranked sixth in the world, but we are not fearful of them at all. We are confident we can beat them. We have got through the qualifiers, the group stage, into the knockout, and we are confident we can make the British happy by beating Germany. We will respect them, but they are beatable.”
Meanwhile German legend Franz Beckenbauer, known as “Der Kaiser”, continues to stick the boot into Fabio Capello’s men, having described them as a “kick and rush” team who are “burnt out” after the long English Premier League season.
But it’s a war of words which Fabio Capello hasn’t engaged in as he prepares to name an unchanged team from the one that saw off Slovenia.
Matthew Upson should start alongside John Terry at the back, despite Ledley King returning to full training Friday, with Jermain Defoe set to partner Wayne Rooney in attack. James Milner is likely to start again on the right after his Beckham-esque cross assisted Defoe’s winning goal.
Germany, like England, had to win their last pool game to progress and their 1-0 defeat of Ghana was enough to see them through. Dangerman and playmaker Mesut Ozil has filled the spacious shoes of the absent Michael Ballack in this tournament so far, with a superb winning goal against Ghana and a Man-of-the-Match winning performance against Australia.
But Germany have already been dealt a blow in losing the injured Cacau and may also be forced to take to the field in Bloemfontein without the influential midfielder Sebastien Schweinsteiger. Goal machine Miroslav Klose returns.
Players to watch
England: Jermain Defoe
Defoe is a poacher. He’ll happily appear to be doing very little for an hour before ruthlessly exposing a defence with his deadly shooting ability. But with only one goal against a major nation (in an international friendly against Netherlands), questions remain over Defoe's pedigree on the biggest of stages.
But his match-winning performance against Slovenia provided a timely boost and his ability to shake off the shackles of the German back line may shape England's hopes.
Interestingly, England have won six and drawn one of the previous games in which Jermain Defoe has scored. So if Defoe scores, back England in play.
Germany: Miroslav Klose
Second only to Gerd Muller in Germany's all-time scoring chart, Klose went into the finals with questions to answer after a dismal season with Bayern Munich. A goal in the first game against Australia relieved some of the pressure but he was then controversially sent off against Serbia. England have yet to face a quality forward yet in the finals, with Robert Green's gaffe against the USA the only goal conceded. Klose is a classy tournament performer and his influence on the game could be the difference.
Know your enemy
There’s not much more these two need to know about each other.
They have faced each other 29 times in international friendlies, with both sides sharing the spoils with 13 wins each. There have been just three ties, not including the two occasions – in Italia 90 and Euro 96 – where Germany have broken English hearts by winning on penalty shootouts.
England had never lost to Germany before Franz Beckenbauer’s goal in 1968 gave the Germans a 1-0 win. They have since beaten England three times in major tournaments (3-2 in 1970 and on penalties in 1990 and 1996).
England’s wins have been relatively insignificant in comparison but they do boast a memorable win over their familiar foe when they beat the Germans 5-1 in their own backyard in 2001, a Michael Owen hat-trick the difference. England fans remained inside the Olympiastadion long into the night singing, "5-1 and even Heskey scored".
Recent games have been close affairs, with Germany beating England 2-1 at the new Wembley in 2007 and England winning 2-1 in Berlin in 2008.
The last six results are: Germany, England, Germany, England, Germany, England - an ominous trend for Fabio Capello’s men.
Weather
The game will be played at the Free State stadium in Bloemfontein, kicking off at 10 a.m. ET.
Given the altitude of 1,400 metres above sea level and the fact that evening temperatures in Bloemfontein regularly drop to freezing at this time of year, the winter World Cup will truly come into its own here. Could the youth of the German side be an advantage in these testing conditions?
But given that both sides are European this shouldn’t adversely affect either, but it should be considered by bettors.
Stat attack
England have played Germany four times at the World Cup and each game has finished level after 90 minutes with three extending to extra-time and one being decided on penalty kicks.
England have taken 29 corners so far in the World Cup - more than any other team after the end of the group stage.
Paul the Octopus is the sensation of Germany, correctly predicting all the team's results at this World Cup, including the Serbia defeat. He picked Germany for this game.