Germany vs. Australia: Winners and Losers from International Friendly
Germany and Australia fought out a 2-2 draw in Kaiserslautern on Wednesday night, with the World Cup winners and the Asian Cup winners meeting in an international friendly.
Germany took an early lead through Marco Reus, but after he missed a big chance to double the lead, the Socceroos turned things around with goals either side of the break from James Troisi and Mile Jedinak. Just 10 minutes from time, Lukas Podolski netted his 48th international goal to force the draw.
Here are all our winners and losers from the game.
Winner: Mathew Leckie
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The most effective and exciting Australia player was undoubtedly wide forward Mathew Leckie, whose pace and direct running in behind the Germany back three gave the likes of Benedikt Howedes huge problems in the first half.
Leckie showed fantastic intent and acceleration to dribble at the back line whenever possible, with a few crosses giving his team-mates the chance to attack and put themselves in the driving seat when the scores were level. He also could have scored himself with a bit more composure—but fell over the ball when one-on-one with the keeper.
A change to a back four for Germany didn't halt Leckie's counter-attacking ability, either, as he simply stuck wider and drifted in behind the full-back. Overall, it was a fine and effective outlet performance from the Aussie.
Loser: Ron-Robert Zieler
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While Manuel Neuer is the undisputed No. 1 for Germany, there are probably several goalkeepers who think they have a worthy shot of being the backup once Euro 2016 roles around, and Ron-Robert Zieler would be one of them.
The Hannover stopper got his chance and played the full 90 minutes against Australia, but didn't really display the shot-stopping ability or commanding presence that he is renowned for, getting a hand to both of the goals he conceded without managing to actually change the trajectory of the ball. Jedinak's free-kick strike, while impressive, was certainly one Zieler would hoped to save more often than not.
In addition, Zieler was lucky not to concede another goal after losing the ball dribbling outside of his area. Neuer won't be too worried on this performance, but Roman Weidenfeller and co. might be feeling they have a shot at stepping up next time.
Winner: Sami Khedira
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For the hour or so that he spent on the pitch, Sami Khedira actually looked like Sami Khedira, playing a central midfield role where he was able to press, win the ball and then surge forward into the channels to display all his best traits.
The first 20 minutes were certainly the best part of his game as he broke toward the Australia penalty area with regularity, setting up a goal that was ruled out for offside mere seconds before his terrific break down the left ended with an outside-of-the-boot assist for Marco Reus' goal.
Khedira worked well alongside Ilkay Gundogan, looked sharp for the first half and then tailed off somewhat—as can be expected with his lack of minutes of late. Next year, with a new club, he should once more be a tremendous asset to help dominate the centre of the park.
Loser: Karim Bellarabi
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Bayer Leverkusen's Karim Bellarabi has had a wonderful season in the Bundesliga, looking a dangerous threat every time he takes to the field as one of his side's front three.
Deservedly winning a place on the German squad as a result of late, Bellarabi was handed a start against the Socceroos—but on the right side of a midfield four, with plenty of defensive responsibility as his side only had a back three, not with a conventional full-back protecting him behind.
He wasn't really able to start his driving runs into the box from high up the field as a result and frequently failed to deliver any kind of quality crossing or shooting until the final seconds before he was subbed. He's a good asset for the national team, but probably not if they play this 3-4-1-2 system.
Winner: The Reus and Gotze Partnership
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In attack, in the absence of any out-and-out striker, Joachim Low opted for movement and technical ability as he paired Marco Reus and Mario Gotze in a loose double act.
Both had licence to roam freely. Gotze initially popped up both on the right and left sides of the penalty area while Reus timed his runs centrally to make the most of the frequent counter-attacks that Germany made from midfield, while Mesut Ozil also had a good early impact playing just off the duo.
Neither were of huge effect after the break as the tempo dropped and Australia took the lead, sending both eventually off the field. But it presented a good 45 minutes of viewing for Low as he ponders how to restructure the Germany attack and include his best players and potential goalscorers in the side.
