Germany vs. Spain FIFA World Cup 2010: Do Germans Look Like World Cup Winners?

Germany seemed to have developed a habit of confounding expectations in this World Cup after chalking up another comfortable win in what most thought would be a tight match.

Their 4-0 thrashing of Argentina in the quarter-finals followed their comprehensive 4-1 demolition of England in the previous round and in both cases the opposition were expected to give Joachim Loew's men more of game.

As it is, they didn't and Germany have been able to cruise through to the semis without really having to break sweat. But are they really as good as their last two results make out and do they have the look of World Cup winners about them? I would suggest not.

Admittedly, they have played some fantastic counterattacking football and they have looked deadly on the break. However, England committed some basic defensive errors which Germany took advantage of, while Argentina seemed keen to blunt their own attacking threat and rarely looked like scoring.

In fact, if Loew could have had a word in the ears of the Argentina players before kickoff, he would have asked them to play in exactly the way they did. The World Cup betting made Germany underdogs from the game, but they looked the better team for the whole match.

Maradonna's side looked stale and lacking in ideas, something which was epitomised by their failure to make use of the width of the pitch.

Again and again they cut inside only to find their path blocked by four or five German defenders, meaning the likes of Lionel Messi were limited to long shots through a crowd, hardly something that is going to get the most out of one of the world's best strikers.

Their refusal to spread the ball out wide meant they were unable to stretch the German side at all, something even England managed to do in their defeat. Loew's men struggled to deal with crosses and looked defensively suspect when pushed on to the back foot against the Three Lions.

Argentina, though, didn't give themselves chance to find out just how fragile hat backline is.

Despite all their frailties, Germany do have many good points and their next opponents, Spain, will need to raise their game if they are to make the final.

However, if Spain learn the lessons Argentina failed to heed, there's no reason this German side shouldn't end up looking very ordinary.