After the release of certain preliminary 2014 World Cup squads, many eyebrows were raised, especially when the trend seems to favour youth over reputation.
Germany’s World Cup Squad
Perhaps the most unexpected squad announcement came from the German national team boss, Joachim Löw, with young players such as Leon Goretzka, Max Meyer, Erik Durm, Matthias Ginter and Shkodran Mustafi, all 22 or under, being included.
Irrespective of their ages, all the aforementioned players have had exceptional seasons and will look to electrify in the forthcoming friendly fixtures. For 2010’s World Cup, a tournament where Germany finished third, Löw placed so much faith in a youth over experience approach. A major talking point, not just nationally but internationally, is the decision from Löw to include less forwards than expected, with the exclusion of ‘The Hair’ aka Mario Gomez being the most prominent talking point.
In all honesty, both Gomez and German fans are well aware that he has had an injury-ravaged season since making the move to Fiorentina, playing a little over 900 minutes in Italy. The ex-Bayern Munich hitman is a decent player, however, he often flatters to deceive.
Another noteworthy omission was Gladbach’s 26 year old Max Kruse. The young man played great last season, he also had an incredible Hinrunde. Despite these glaring facts, there was neither a place for him on the plane to Brazil or the squad for their most recent friendly against Poland on May 13. When one considers Germany’s lack of conventional frontmen, logically, the question arises; won’t they lack a ‘Plan B’ in the big games, especially if Klose has fitness issues? The old hand has suffered with numerous injuries this season causing him to miss seventeen games in all competitions.
However, Löw has been a staunch supporter of Germany’s beloved striker, recently saying; “Klose always hits top form at tournaments; we are convinced he can help the team. It will almost certainly be his last”.
Brazil’s World Cup Squad
How about Brazil, one of the favourites to go all the way? For true followers of the Seleção, and particularly for followers of Luis Felipe Scolari, the samba nation’s 23-man World Cup squad included minimal surprises.
The likes of Robinho, Kaká, Lucas Leiva, Philippe Coutinho and Lucas Moura failed to make the final cut. Coutinho aside, the other players can hardly feel aggrieved, especially Robinho and Moura, two players who have had deplorably poor seasons.
However, Atlético Madrid duo Miranda and Felipe Luis were surprise omissions. Given the fine form of the defenders this season, one can’t help but wonder if Scolari will regret the exclusions. As always, Big Phil seems to select players he knows and trusts, rather than those who have impressed in the latter half of the season.
One cannot help but wonder if Brazil’s failure to secure the patriotic declaration of the inexhaustible Diego Costa will prove very costly. La Liga’s most prolific striker opted to represent Spain, and one can hardly blame him. Diego Simeone’s main man was never called up by Brazil for a senior competitive game. This constant snobbery by Brazil looks very likely to prove detrimental, especially when you consider the back up to Fred, their much praised number nine, includes Jô and…………….. hmmmm.
Before wrapping up, I for one cannot believe that Big Phil has overlooked the always brilliant Luisão and the young talent that is Marquinhos, opting to include the very average Henrique, Napoli’s utility man, instead. Marquinhos has played remarkably well for PSG as a centre back, and can also operate at right-back, while Luisao has played a major role in Benefica’s Europa League campaign, a competition they are now favourites to win.
Japan’s World Cup Squad
Finally, somewhat randomly, I’ll finish by discussing Japan’s World Cup squad. On Monday, surprising many football fans, manager Alberto Zaccheroni named striker Yoshito Okubo in Japan’s 23 man squad after well over two years in the international wilderness. Appearing just once under the Italian’s reign, a friendly back in 2012, the Kawasaki Frontale goal scorer started all four of Japan’s games at the 2010 World Cup. A man who rewards current form, Zaccheroni has acknowledged the 31-year-old for his prolific goal-scoring return since last year’s move to Frontale. 2013 saw Okubo win the J. League Golden Boot with 26 goals and he has bagged a further eight this season.
Okubo’s inclusion was the only real surprise in a rather predictable squad, yet Zaccheroni has raised some questions by opting to include Sanfrecce Hiroshima midfielder Toshihiro Aoyama over Hajime Hosogai.
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