Mesut Ozil Will Be Germany's Key to Breaking Down Northern Ireland

Germany could be through to the knockout stages of Euro 2016 before they take the field at the Parc des Princes for their match against Northern Ireland on Tuesday. If England beat Slovakia on Monday, the four points the world champions won against Ukraine and Poland will guarantee them a finish among the four best third-placed teams.

Of course, the team will hardly recognise the result from Saint-Etienne. Anything other than a resounding win over one of the biggest underdogs in the tournament would have to be considered a disappointment and a big blow to the German hopes of winning the trophy.

A resounding win could also be what it takes to win their group, seeing as Poland play already-eliminated Ukraine in the second fixture of Group C. Due to their goalless draw in the direct matchup, every goal could count.

With that in mind, Germany need an improvement from their attacking players. Scoring their first goal of the tournament following a free-kick and their second with a counter-attack when Ukraine had committed many men forward, and having barely troubled Lukasz Fabianski in Poland's goal in the last match, the World Cup holders haven't exactly displayed the fireworks to this point.

Leading the line, Mario Gotze has hardly been involved in his team's play, with countless crosses flying over his head and his attempt to see the ball by dropping into deeper positions proving rather futile. The 24-year-old had an almost poetic response to the vitriolic criticism he's had to endure over the last few days:

Mario Gomez, the alternative up front, only played 19 minutes against Poland on Thursday and was even less involved, getting only five touches, per WhoScored.com, thus not setting himself up to take Gotze's place on Tuesday.

On the right wing, Thomas Muller has yet to contribute to a single big scoring opportunity in France and arguably played two of the most nondescript matches of his Germany career.

On the other side, Julian Draxler has been more involved, firing away a number of shots after cutting in from the wing, but his overall play has left so much to be desired that the expectation is he will lose his spot to fellow Wolfsburg man Andre Schurrle against the Green and White Army.

Perhaps most surprising so far, however, has been the understated tournament of Mesut Ozil. The Arsenal playmaker looked destined to put his stamp on the Germany team in France, coming off his best professional season in England and being in his prime at the age of 27.

So far, Ozil's performances have been somewhere between OK and underwhelming. His glorious assist for Bastian Schweinsteiger in the dying moments against Ukraine was a highlight, but, other than that, he's struggled to make a big impact despite being very active, as this graphic alludes to:

He's still been Germany's best creator so far, which isn't saying too much given the struggles of the players around him. Raphael Honigstein wrote for ESPN FC after the Poland match: 

"

Any creative momentum had come from Ozil, the No. 10 with the freedom to drift near the box. The Arsenal man couldn't provide the pivotal moment, however. His passing was a little off, the movement not ingenious enough to outsmart the superbly organised defence around centre-backs Kamil Glik and Michal Pazdan.

"

As in some of the previous tournaments he's played, more can be expected of the Gelsenkirchen-born star: He is a much better player than he has shown in the first two matches.

An improvement from Ozil would come at an opportune time against Northern Ireland, who will have no incentive to contribute to the game's flow.

The underdogs had 35 per cent possession in their 1-0 loss against Poland, per German sport magazine Kicker, and only 31 per cent in their 2-0 win over Ukraine. Playing with five defenders and three rather defensive-minded midfielders in both of these matches, the Northern Irish built a wall their opponents found difficult to traverse.

Pavel Golovkin/Associated Press

With Germany struggling to create dangerous situations in front of goal to this point, expect Northern Ireland to be even more comfortable without the ball, positioned in a massive block around their own penalty box.

Per FIFA.com, Leeds United midfielder Stuart Dallas said: "When people watch us, they realise how much we want it. Obviously, we don’t have the players that Germany, France and a few others have got, but we work twice as hard as any other side."

While it's a bit of a cliche, they truly believes their fighting spirit can make up for any deficiencies on the playing surface. Midfielder Josh Magennis told FIFA.com: "We never say 'never' and we never give up. I know most teams say the same thing, but what makes us different is the passion we have for the team and the game, and the connection we have with our fans."

Germany head coach Joachim Low took the same line in his press conference on Saturday:

If his side are to break down Northern Ireland, Ozil will be the key. Germany will have to keep chipping away at the green-and-white wall, letting the ball circulate deep in enemy territory until they find an opening.

If not the Arsenal man, who is supposed to play that one final ball to release a team-mate? The 27-year-old has the vision and technical skills his team will require to crack the Northern Irish code.

Low, of course, might be tempted to tinker with his lineup for this match, and one option could be to move Ozil into a deeper position. He played next to Toni Kroos in the second half of the final warm-up match against Hungary and looked comfortable. "Mesut can do a lot for our game in defensive midfield alongside Toni," said Low, per the German football association's official website after that match.

Putting the playmaker into a deeper position seems like a waste at first blush, but, with Germany presumably having a lot of possession in Northern Ireland's half, he'd be a central midfielder on paper only.

Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images

In fact, this move would possibly kill two birds with one stone, as it would allow for Gomez to make the starting XI up front and Gotze to move into his natural position in attacking midfield.

Inserting a strong finisher such as Gomez into the lineup is never a bad idea, and a classic striker could be of good use especially against Northern Ireland's physical back line. Gotze, on the other hand, would provide another versatile option to link up with team-mates in all areas of the pitch without Germany abandoning the penalty box altogether.

The one risk this strategy would entail is that Germany would have little cover for counter-attacks, with a willing runner such as Sami Khedira sacrificed for more fluidity in possession. 

Then again, with Jerome Boateng in incredible form so far and the best goalkeeper in the world behind him in Manuel Neuer, Germany might be able to afford having less protection than in previous games.

Lars Pollmann is a Featured Columnist who also writes for YellowWallPod.com. You can follow him on Twitter.