Euro Cup 2012: Team Profile: Germany

There is less than 12 hours to begin the world’s one of the most exciting tournament euro Cup 2012 where all 16 qualified European giants will fight for the cup.

www.anantasports.com is bringing the profiles of all the participating team to its readers and here it is Germany. Gernany  is taking part in the tournaments under the guidance of coach Joachim Low. 

 Joachim Low’s side is one of the strongest team o not only the Europe but also the world. Germany is always considered as potential winner of any tournaments of Football.Germany qualified for the Euro 2012 as a  group winner of relatively weak qualifying Group  A ahead of Turkey, Belgium and Austria. Germany stormed through their qualifying campaign: they were the first to book their place in Poland and Ukraine, won every match, and earned more points than any other team. After a narrow win away to Belgium in their opener, the record European champions earned multi-goal victories in all their other fixtures but for one, a 2-1 road win over Austria in which Mario Gomez fired home a last-minute winner.

   Having won the European Championship three times in the past, Germany are the tournament's most successful nation. Their first win came in their first appearance, in 1972, in which legends including Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Muller, Paul Breitner and more marched through the tournament, beating the Soviet Union 3-0 in the final.

German Team for Euro 2012

Germany went on to repeat the triumph eight years later as Horst Hrubesch's late strike sunk Belgium in the final. After a poor 1984 tournament, they steadily improved before claiming their third title in 1996 as Oliver Bierhoff netted a golden goal in the final against the Czech Republic.
Germany's disaster at Euro 2000 prompted a youth initiative in the Bundesliga that has resulted in their vastly increased talent pool as of late, and after finishing runners-up at Euro 2008, they are hungry for a first tournament win in 16 years.

   Germany have have lifted the World Cup three times (across different generations in 1954, 1974, and 1990) - and they have also reached the final on another four occasions. As germany is in Group of Death of Euro 2012, even a single mistake can cause them a huge loss.

Coach Joachim Low:

Always dapper, Joachim Loew burst into the limelight as Jurgen Klinsmann's assistant at the 2006 World Cup. 'Jogi' was seen as the tactical genius behind the scenes as Germany thrilled their fans with a new brand of attacking football. He continued that philosophy four years later in South Africa, and showed he is not afraid to make a tough decision by dropping Michael Ballack for Euro 2012 qualification in order to bring through younger talent. Has a contract until 2014.

German Coach Joachim Low

 Captain Philipp Lahm:

There were massive shoes for Lahm to fill as he took over for Michael Ballack ahead of World Cup 2010, and the fact that he did so under some controversy made it even more difficult. His predecessor had no intent to simply surrender the armband, and Lahm was stuck in a very tricky situation.
  To his credit, the Bayern Munich man took everything in stride and has since adapted well: the most obvious example of course is in South Africa, where he stood in superbly, settling the team and inspiring some outstanding performances. He is not a very vocal man, but Lahm knows how to lead by example and has done so countless times while wearing the national team shirt.

German Captain Philipp Lahm

 Player to watch:Mesut Ozil

 Relatively unknown to the masses before the 2010 World Cup, Mesut Ozil exploded onto the international scene with a series of eye-catching displays in South Africa as Germany played some of their most offensive football in memory.

After being nominated for the Golden Ball Award - given to the tournament's best player - the 23-year-old 'Number 10' soon moved from Werder Bremen to Spanish giants Real Madrid. He racked up seven assists in the qualifying campaign.

German Player Mesut Ozil

 Jersy:

 Brand: Adidas

Home Jersey: White with 3 thin diagonal lines in black, red and yellow
Away Jersey: Green

German Home and Away Jersy

How German Qualify:

Germany was the first team to Qualify for the Euro 2012 as Germany stormed through their qualifying campaignas they  won every match, and earned more points than any other team. After a narrow win away to Belgium in their opener

GROUP A	GP	W	D	L	GD	PTS
1	Germany (Q)	10	10	0	0	27	30
2	Turkey	10	5	2	3	2	17
3	Belgium	10	4	3	3	6	15
4	Austria	10	3	3	4	-1	12
5	Azerbaijan	10	2	1	7	-16	7
6	Kazakhstan	10	1	1	8	-18	4

Sep 3, 2010 Belgium 0-1 Germany
Sep 7, 2010 Germany 6-1 Azerbaijan
Oct 8, 2010 Germany 3-0 Turkey 
Oct 12, 2010 Kazakhstan 0-3 Germany
Mar 26, 2011  Germany 4-0 Kazakhstan
Jun 3, 2011: Austria 1-2 Germany
Jun 7, 2011: Azerbaijan 1-3 Germany
Sep 2, 2011: Germany 6-2 Austria
Oct 7, 2011: Turkey 1-3 Germany
Oct 11, 2011: Germany 3-1 Belgium

Germany Squad for Euro 2012:

Coach: Joachim Low

Goalkeepers: Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich), Tim Wiese (Werder Bremen), Ron-Robert Zieler (Hannover)

Defenders: Holger Badstuber (Bayern Munich), Jerome Boateng (Bayern Munich), Benedikt Hoewedes (Schalke), Mats Hummels (Borussia Dortmund), Philipp Lahm (Bayern Munich), Per Mertesacker (Arsenal), Marcel Schmelzer (Borussia Dortmund)

Midfielders: Lars Bender (Bayer Leverkusen), Mario Goetze (Borussia Dortmund), Ilkay Guendogan (Borussia Dortmund), Sami Khedira (Real Madrid), Toni Kroos (Bayern Munich), Thomas Mueller (Bayern Munich), Mesut Oezil (Real Madrid), Lukas Podolski (Cologne), Marco Reus (Borussia Moenchengladbach), Andre Schuerrle (Bayer Leverkusen), Bastian Schweinsteiger (Bayern Munich)

Forwards: Mario Gomez (Bayern Munich), Miroslav Klose (Lazio)

Style of play: Coach Joachim Low employs a fluid 4-2-3-1 formation that often morphs into 4-3-3. Regradless of the setup, Germany plays a high-tempo, pressing game when not in possession. At the 2010 World Cup they relied on the counter-attack for scoring chances. Now they are much more assertive, using short 1-2 passes and quick ball movement. Fullbacks Philipp Lahm and Jerome Boateng give the attack width and pace down the wings. In the middle, Sami Khedira shields the back four, while partner Bastian Schweinsteiger directs traffic. In front of them, Mesut Ozil serves as the midfield conductor, flanked by Lukas Podolski and Thomas Muller. Up top, Miroslav Klose is the target man, relying on service from the midfield trio.