Picking the Best Germany XI of Players Not at the World Cup
Joachim Low still has until June 2 to narrow his provisional squad down to the required 23-man team to take to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, but even now it appears that he will be without some very talented players.
There are some that Low has decided to omit from his plans as a matter of personal preferences. Many others either are currently or have until recently been injured, making them unrealistic options to bring to a tournament in which even slight change in form and fitness could make the difference between success and failure.
So deep is Germany's talent pool that, even before the final cut, it's possible to make a very formidable team of World Cup absentees. Click ahead for a position-by-position guide to the team, which takes the shape of a 4-3-3 formation.
Goalkeeper: Marc-Andre ter Stegen
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Although he won't be at the World Cup, Marc-Andre ter Stegen is Germany's best goalkeeping talent and his outstanding performances at Gladbach over the last three-and-a-half seasons earned him a transfer to Barcelona. Still just 22 years of age, the goalkeeper is most likely to succeed Victor Valdes between the posts at Camp Nou.
Although his career hasn't yet taken off with the senior national team, Ter Stegen is the starting goalkeeper for the under-21s and recently had a very convincing performance for Jogi Low's side in a friendly against Poland.
Despite his previous struggles, his ostensible class suggests that it's only a matter of time before he becomes Manuel Neuer's backup in the senior team. And especially considering that he is six years Neuer's junior, Ter Stegen may well replace the current No. 1 in the long-term.
Right-Back: Oliver Sorg
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There are several good German right-backs who will not be at the World Cup, including Oliver Sorg, Sebastian Jung and Tony Jantschke. On the margin, Sorg makes this team on the right of defense by a slim margin ahead of Jung and Jantschke, the latter of whom featured in central defense more often than not during the 2013-14 season.
Sorg has played two excellent seasons with Freiburg and, for his consistency, was recently capped for the first time in Low's senior team. He played well in this month's friendly with Poland, and for that and his performance with Freiburg, he makes the grade at right-back.
Center-Back: Tony Jantschke
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Tony Jantschke is probably the best German full-back never to be capped for the senior national team and may also be the best such center-back. The versatile defender has convinced wherever he's been used, which speaks well to his intelligence as a footballer and ability to adapt.
At Gladbach, Jantschke helped fill the void left by the injured Alvaro Dominguez in October and never gave up his starting spot when the Spaniard returned to action. He is one of the most significant reasons why the Fohlen had a defensive record in 2013-14 that was only bettered by Bayern, Dortmund and Leverkusen.
Center-Back: Kaan Ayhan
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Kaan Ayhan is a controversial inclusion in this team for a number of reasons, but he makes the grade in a move worthy of the forward-thinking Low. A Gelsenkirchen native and part of the Mannschaft's junior teams in his youth, Ayhan recently switched allegiance to Turkey. He has not, however, played competitively for the senior side just yet and therefore is still eligible for nomination to the German team.
Ayhan is, at 19 years of age, still quite young—he only began to play senior football on a regular basis in March. But the versatile defender, who has long been highly rated, has made huge strides in his development over the final stages of the season.
In games in which Ayhan played, Schalke won 10 and lost just two of 14 matches. Otherwise notorious for their leaky defense, the Konigsblauen kept three clean sheets in the eight matches in which Ayhan started in central defense. With a nod to the future, he's a fine fit in this team.
Left-Back: Marcell Jansen
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Although he was called up to Low's preliminary squad for the World Cup, Marcell Jansen has rather quietly been demoted to "on call," according to the DFB's official website. Injuries notwithstanding, he won't be at the World Cup.
The last season was difficult for Jansen, who barely avoided relegation with Hamburg. But among those German left-backs not at the World Cup, he is arguably the best. Dennis Aogo is another candidate along with youngster Christian Gunter, but Jansen is the most experienced of the bunch, having made 45 appearances for Germany.
Central Midfield: Sven Bender
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Sven Bender has had more success at Dortmund than his twin brother, Lars, has at Leverkusen. But in Low's eyes, Sven has always stood in his brother's shadow on an individual level. Whereas his brother has amassed 17 caps, Sven has only made seven appearances for Germany. And he has some right to feel unfairly snubbed.
Sven predictably has many of the same attributes of his brother, most notably exceptional stamina and superb defensive abilities. But he was injured for long periods of the 2013-14 season, including the critical run-in during which his side fell short in the Champions League and DFB-Pokal. That, perhaps, is why despite Lars' recent withdrawal due to a thigh injury, Sven has not been called up to play in his stead.
A pity, he could have offered Low's team some much-needed steel in midfield.
Central Midfield: Lars Bender
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Lars Bender would likely have made Low's final 23-man squad for the World Cup if not for a thigh injury sustained last week. Tragically, the 25-year-old will miss out on what would have been the first World Cup of his career.
Like his brother, Sven, Lars has an uncommon engine. He can run for days and closes down space like only his twin can do. The main difference is that Lars is a bit more savvy on the ball, an attribute that Low seems to prefer.
It's a no-brainer to include Lars in this team, reuniting him with his twin in a partnership that proved successful in their youth at 1860 Munich and with the German under-19 team that won the 2008 European Championship.
Central Midfield: Ilkay Gundogan
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Without a doubt, the player Germany will miss the most at the World Cup will be Ilkay Gundogan.
A year ago he was arguably the best defensive midfielder in the world. A complete package of attacking, defending and possession-keeping skills, he'd proved himself time and time again against some of the world's best holding midfielders in the Champions League. Tragically, the 23-year-old has been sidelined since mid-August with a back injury.
Germany are especially short of staff in midfield entering the World Cup, and Gundogan is probably the only player in this team who could have expected to start for Low's team in Brazil.
Right Wing: Andre Hahn
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Heading into the 2013-14 campaign, Andre Hahn was a rather unknown quantity. Now he's a fully capped Germany international. The 24-year-old won't be in Brazil, but was called up to Low's preliminary squad for a friendly with Poland and also featured against Chile earlier in the spring.
Hahn fully deserves his international status, having scored 12 goals and assisted nine more for an otherwise rather ordinary Augsburg side that finished eighth in the Bundesliga, defying the odds as they nearly pipped Mainz to a position in a qualifier for next season's Europa League.
With mercurial pace, good control and a powerful shot, Hahn is a classic winger whose superb work rate makes him a fine fit in Low's team.
Left Wing: Max Kruse
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One player who can have a legitimate gripe with Low over his exclusion from the World Cup squad is Max Kruse. The Gladbach man was introduced to the senior national team a year ago and played generally well in his six caps. And at club level he scored and assisted 12 goals apiece in 2013-14.
Especially considering his ability to play as a center-forward and Germany's lack of depth in that position, Kruse's omission is rather curious. The 26-year-old makes this team as a left-winger, however, a position in which he played during his time at Freiburg.
Center-Forward: Mario Gomez
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Mario Gomez played just 15 games in all competitions in 2013-14 and was a benchwarmer throughout the previous season, but he nonetheless is the best striker not to make it into Joachim Low's provisional World Cup squad.
The 28-year-old scored 80 goals in two seasons while first choice at Bayern Munich; in 2012-13 he was demoted to the bench after sustaining an ankle injury, but even as a substitute he scored 19 goals, via Transfermarkt, at a remarkable rate of one every 64 minutes. His expulsion from Bayern for just €15.5 million was inexplicable. Much to his dismay, the striker spent almost the entire 2013-14 campaign sidelined with knee injuries.
At 100 percent, though, Gomez is a lethal scorer and even has a decent record with the Germany team. An oft-overlooked fact is that he finished his Euro 2012 campaign in a tie for the golden boot.
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