Germany vs. Gibraltar: How Die Mannschaft Lions Should Line Up in Euro 2016 Game

Joachim Low's German national team come into this week's Euro 2016 qualifying match against Gibraltar in rather odd circumstances. 

On the one hand, Germany will have to approach Friday's match with absolute humility. Too many points have already gone missing in this group to teams they should have beaten. If the minnows offer anything but absolute victory for Low's side, then there will be hell to pay among the press. 

Yet on the other hand, this team go into the qualifying game fresh off the opening screening of the feature-length documentary Die Mannschaft, a cinematic tale of their World Cup victory just under four months ago. Just days before the competitive fixture, Germany's world champions were walking the red carpet and basking in their summer victory. 

Either way, Manuel Neuer & Co. will have to throw the tuxedos to one side and role their sleeves up if they have any hope of getting this qualification campaign back on track. Gibraltar awaits and anything but all three points is simply not an option. 

Defence

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With the likes of Borussia Dortmund pair Mats Hummels and Marcel Schmelzer still out with injury, Low has had to shuffle his defensive deck of late, which has seen the emergence of a few unfamiliar faces. 

Perhaps the most likely to feature on Friday will be young left-back Jonas Hector of FC Cologne, who has enjoyed a strong start to the season. Germany do of course have Erik Durm available for selection, but Low may just opt to throw the debutant in and see how he does. 

On the right we should expect to see Antonio Rudiger keep his new role as right-back, with the likes of Hoffenheim's Sebastian Rudy and Valencia's Shkodran Mustafi awaiting their own shot at the position from the bench. 

Central defence is likely to be a more straightforward affair, with Bayern Munich's Jerome Boateng partnering World Cup star Benedikt Howedes in Hummels' absence. The experienced Schalke defender will feel right at home alongside Boateng and should put Low's mind at ease for the time being. 

Manuel Neuer will also feature in goal. Or at least somewhere around the edge of the box. 

Midfield

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In a similar situation to the somewhat untested defensive line, Low will also be allowed to experiment with his midfield whilst key players continue to recover from injury. 

In Bastian Schweinsteiger's absence we should see Gladbach star Christoph Kramer keep his spot in the middle of the park alongside Real Madrid's Toni Kroos. The 23-year-old may have just cost his side a defeat to Dortmund earlier in the week, but he has continued to impress for the national team whenever asked to take up the task. 

Low did call up Lars Bender of Leverkusen and old favourite Sami Khedira from Madrid, yet dropping either Kroos or Kramer would make little sense at this point unless either is fatigued. 

In front of the holding pair we should see Bayern playmaker Mario Gotze reclaim his role as the natural No. 10 to this side. While Mezut Ozil continues to recover from a recent injury and a run of poor form that has plagued him for the past year, the Bavarian midfield magician will hope to make the most of the opportunity and pull Germany's strings against Gibraltar. 

Attack

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Low should offer very few surprises on Friday when it comes to attack by starting Bayern goalscorer Thomas Muller as his lone striker once again, despite the player's notable discomfort with the role and the availability of more notable forwards on the bench such as Gladbach's Max Kruse and Hoffenheim's Kevin Volland. 

The irregular Bayern forward is a much better player than the latter two but one would think a more conventional penalty-box striker would be more suited to such a fixture. Despite that, Muller will almost certainly start in the role. 

Low would have hoped to play Dortmund star Marco Reus on the left of his attack, however the forward was confirmed out of action earlier this week with ligament damage, as reported by The Guardian on November 10. 

As such we should now see Chelsea's Andre Schurrle reclaim his role on the left—a position that he has thrived in for Germany recently—while Bayer Leverkusen's Karim Bellarabi takes up his favoured spot on the right of the front three. 

Low will also have Lukas Podolski available should either wingers need replacing.