Battle of Last Four

So it has come down to last four and whosever day it is will decide who will be present in Berlin on July the Ninth. How well or bad the teams have played will matter no more, the only thing which matters now is how they absorb this pressure and hold their nerves. It is a match between one of the best midfields in the tournament vs. one of the best defense and its ironic both units are missing one of their key players. Italy’s Alessandro Nesta hasn’t recovered from his groin injury and Germany’s midfield star Torsten Frings has been handed over two-match suspension after a video evidence showed that he punched Argentinean forward Cruz after their Quarter final win.

War of words have already began between the two camps, started with Germany’s newspaper calling Italians lazy and then Italians players showing their disappointment over it. Then in latest episode with Frings suspension it has been alleged that Italian FA was the one who provided FIFA with the evidence. So its all heating up.

Tactics wise I believe Germany will look to attack from the flanks. I am assuming they will start aggressively and will try to put Italians under pressure. That will make Italians nervous and if Germany succeeds in getting an early lead Italians will be under loads of pressure.

For Italians they should try winning battle in midfield and make Germans work hard for possession. Italians must know home crowd can easily turn into a disadvantage and they should try to slow down pace of the game and frustrate Germany initially and then up the tempo.

Though my heart is with Azzurri but I know Germany has a huge chance to advance. So lets sit and enjoy whatever unfolds in Dortmund.