Euro 2012: Thoughts on Germany's 1-0 Victory over Portugal

Germany's manager Joachim Loew made two brave decisions prior to the match against Portugal on Saturday that many had put beyond the coach before. One of them paid off right from the get go; the other one almost didn't. Loew removed Per Mertesacker and Miroslav Klose from the starting lineup and replaced them with Mats Hummels and Mario Gomez.

Hummels had a brilliant night. He thwarted Portuguese attacks time and again, and he really repaid the coach's trust in him. Hummels has rarely been brilliant in a Germany shirt before. There were plenty of worries prior to the match about Mertesacker's fitness and form, and now Hummels has managed to take away those worries.

Putting in Gomez really didn't have a great effect. He missed two good headers, and his build-up play was average. The attack had a bad night. Thomas Mueller and Lukas Podolski, especially Podolski, were quite poor. Mesut Ozil's display at best was average.  Bastian Schweinsteiger struggled slightly at times. Germany's crossing was poor. They looked hassled, and this was, of course, also because Portugal was pressing a lot.

Drama really ensued in the final third of the match. Miro Klose was standing on the touchline ready to come on. Sami Khedira sent a cross in the box, and the ball deflected off of Joao Moutinho perfectly for Gomez to head in. He stole the show with what was in effect his last chance. Had Gomez not scored, a lot of questions would have been asked. He repaid Loew's faith in him by scoring the match-winner.

What cannot be forgotten is that Germany was poor. Their defending was excellent, but otherwise they had a poor night. The Dutch played well despite losing to the Danes and will be up for the next match. They are in need of a win to hold on to their dream.

Just going back to the German defence, while Philipp Lahm didn't play anywhere near as well as he can, Jerome Boateng and Holger Badstuber as well as Hummels played really well. Some tackles were brilliant. Boateng did let Cristiano Ronaldo pass into the box a few times, but his last-ditch tackle to deny Ronaldo what would surely have been a goal was brilliant.

Manuel Neuer is the exact kind of keeper a back four would like to have to rely on. He denied Varela at the end to secure the points for Germany. And credit to Schweinsteiger for challenging Bruno Alves in the dying seconds to keep the Portuguese from heading in past Neuer.

Questions will be asked about Lukas Podolski. If a veteran of more than a decade can lose his spot in the starting lineup, Podolski can be replaced as well. He is a fantastic player, but Andre Schurrle is in better form and Marco Reus was just excellent throughout the season.Will Loew make another change before the next match?

Let me hear your thoughts on this one.