Germany manager Joachim Low’s experiment with youth will face a litmus test when his boys take on a dangerous Chile side in their Group B clash of the 2017 Confederations Cup at the Kazan Arena on Thursday.
Die Mannschaft made heavy weather of beating Australia in their opening game, eventually prevailing 3-2 but not before chinks in their defence were exposed.
And, while Chile were made to work for their 2-0 win over Cameroon, La Roja have plenty of experience and could perhaps find a way to rattle the rising stars that Germany have sent to Russia and clinch top-spot in the process.
Germany
Impressive in attack, but somehow vulnerable in defence, the World Cup champions' performance in their opener has given Low a selection dilemma.
Bernd Leno’s two blunders almost cost Germany the three points and Marc-Andre Ter Stegen, along with Kevin Trapp, will be pushing to start between the sticks.
Up front, the ‘oldie’ in the team, Sandro Wagner was uncharacteristically sloppy in his finishing and after Timo Werner had a bright cameo against the Socceroos, perhaps it it time for Germany to go all-out with youth.
Their defence was a bit shaky, with Arsenal man Shkodran Mustafi and Antonio Rudiger’s centre-back pairing looking suspect under pressure, an area a ruthless side like Chile will look to exploit.
What they are saying: “We cannot allow so many mistakes against Chile as we did in the Australia game and we need to be more efficient up front,” stressed German full-back Joshua Kimmich (as per AFP).
Injury concerns: None
Suspension alert: None
Chile
It would be a disservice to Chile to say they are a one-man team, but it would not be far from the truth to say they are a team heavily dependent on Alexis Sanchez and Arturo Vidal.
Sanchez, who is struggling with an ankle injury, came off the bench to create an assist for Vidal’s opener against Cameroon and was involved in Eduardo Vargas’ goal later on as well.
Without the Arsenal winger, La Roja lacked the finishing touches and while Germany’s defence is not impenetrable, they will prove harder to break down than the Indomitable Lions did.
So, Chile manager Juan Pizzi has an interesting dilemma on his mind, whether to risk his team’s best player from the start or introduce him as a super-sub, as he did against Cameroon.
How much time Sanchez gets may prove to be the difference between victory and defeat come Thursday.
What they are saying: “When you come up against the world champions you need to be very strong mentally and you need to be in form. And I think we are," asserted Chile midfielder Marcelo Diaz (as per FIFA.com)
Injury concerns: Alexis Sanchez (Ankle)
Suspension alert: None