Beware The Germans
There’s something in the air in Germany. Much maligned for some time, German soccer rarely factored into the thinking of the ‘cultured’ pundits who had gorged themselves on Brazilian full-backs, Italian diamond-formation midfields, Spanish one-touch-football and English long ball skullduggery. They scoffed at the Germans because of their versatility.
National stereotypes are trotted out more often than anywhere else when soccer fans sit round a table. The Germans are efficient, it was always said, but they had no cutting edge; no identity; no color.
It was nonsense then and it is nonsense now.
The Germans have a national side that is always in the running at major events. They rarely fall apart at the early stages of a tournament and they consistently worry larger sides. They are not as mercurial as a France or a Holland, but they are also less likely to throw a tantrum.
Discipline? English soccer types would never say it, but they must be jealous of German discipline in major tournaments. They are capable of sumptuous soccer, like any South American side throwing caution to the wind, but they are also less susceptible at the back. Perhaps that is why they are never mentioned alongside the sides like Brazil or Argentina: they are less likely to play with all out attack in the eyes of the stereotype saturated punter.
However, the conundrum is that German club soccer gets labeled dull as well. It is true that over in their neighbor’s yard, the flattened terrain of Holland, the club scene is poor in comparison with the top leagues in Europe. However, the German Bundesliga is not like the Dutch Eredivisie.
The Bundesliga is the most attended league in Europe, surpassing the English Premier League, La Liga and Serie A. They have competitive sides like Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich, Schalke and, just this season, Borussia Monchengladbach. In the Champions League, Bayern are a fearsome prospect with sweaping attacking threats.
Now it is announced that Germany’s hottest property, the heavily touted Mario Gotze has extended his Dortmund contract until 2016.
Some cynics suggest Gotze is being given more money for a longer period in the hope that someone wealthy like a Real Madrid or a Manchester City, or even Arsenal who have long tailed the little playmaker, will fit a large bill in order to attain his services.
Maybe. However, it is also just as likely that German soccer is going through a renaissance.
In the last few years players like Sami Khedira and Mesut Ozil have joined Real Madrid. Bayern have promoted starlets like Toni Kroos, Thomas Muller and Holger Badstuber. Other clubs have produced highly rated talents like Manuel Neuer, Lukas Podolski, Lars Bender and Benedikt Höwedes while old heads like Mario Gomez and Miroslav Klose have hung in there. Their support is fresh and exciting, though.
Within the league there are other big names, too. Franck Ribery, Omer Toprak, Arjen Robben, Rafinha, Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, Raul and Tranquillo Barnetta. They also have a system that can allow players from all over the world (there is a large number of Americans playing in the league, for example), but there are only a few that have names coming over for a fistful of bank notes. The EPL and the Russian League seem to be picking up the money hungry players just now.
So when pundits of the EPL, in particular, say that the crowds are huge but the soccer dull, take that with a pinch of salt. That is bias talking, and a lot of soccer people may well be worrying that the German brand is set to grow. Bayern look dangerous in the Champions League, Dortmund look a good side and Germany will be building towards another competitive showing at EURO 2012.
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