Germany look to record first-ever competitive win over the Italians

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Lukas Podolski is expected to return to the starting lineup against Italy.© SNS Group

Tonight’s Semi-final clash between Germany and Italy welcomes a unique opportunity for Low’s side.

Not only can they secure a spot in the final of the European Championships, but they can mend a historic trend which has overshadowed the country's success within the sport, against their Italian rivals.

The nation's 16-year wait for a major international trophy seems only one game away, but what stands between Germany and a shot at the European Championships is a foe that neither Low nor any German manager have ever been able to overcome in a competitive game.

Despite this, the German camp have done well to deflect such pressure by detailing Prandelli’s side as simply that; just another side. Speaking earlier in the week, Bastian Schweinsteiger described Italy as nothing more than ‘the next big team’ in a list of scalps he and his team mates have managed to obtain over recent years.

In a similar tone, the Bayern midfielder went on to describe his respect and appreciation for the opponents key man, Andrea Pirlo, before noting that even the peerless playmaker could be stopped.

Joachim Low was quick to diminish the threat of the Italian too, with a quick answer declaring that his side would not be man-marking the midfielder, and would prefer to impose their own style on the game, than play counter-intuitive tactics to the Italians own play.

This comes as no surprise, with Low’s general game-plan of dominating possession and the manner of play, remaining his key priority before every game of the tournament so far.

Germany will approach the game in the same manner in which they’ve approached each game of Euro 2012; with a calm and resolute understanding of the opponent and a clear set of tactics developed and finely tuned by Joachim Low.

The defence is unlikely to change with the selection of Boateng, Hummels, Badstuber and Lahm remaining a certainty when all players have been fit and able for Germany. Similarly, the midfield trio of Sami Khedira, Mesut Ozil and Bastian Schweinsteiger will all be available, despite a late fitness fear from the latter, which has since been confirmed as inaccurate despite his own claims shortly after the Greece game.

Germany’s entire game plan of retaining the ball and quickly moving it to the forwards revolves around these three players, so a top performance from all three is a necessity.

With the obvious threat that the Azzurri propose, a return to the initial inclusion of Thomas Muller and Lucas Podolski at the expense of Marco Reus and Andre Schurrle on the wings, seems likely. The Italians tend to play a rather narrow midfield game, and rely heavily upon the ability of their fullbacks to bomb up and down the field, specifically the right back, Ignacio Abate. To combat this threat, Low will likely play Podolski on the left hand side to help protect Philippe Lahm from being doubled up via the attacking threat of the Italian defender.

Amongst the two tactically driven wide players, Low is likely to stick with his trusted talisman Miroslav Klose up front. The Lazio striker’s build up play was pivotal in the convincing Quarter-final win over Greece, and tends to get the best out of other forward players.

Amongst the embarrassment of riches upon Germany’s bench, Low is likely to turn to his tested ‘plan B’ of Andre Schurrle and Marco Reus if a goal is necessary, or a simple swap between Mario Gomez and Miroslav Klose. In Toni Kroos and Mario Gotze, the coach also possesses two midfielders who can retain the ball as well as any.

Expect the former if Germany are protecting a lead.

Stefan Bienkowski is the editor of Bundesliga Football. You can follow him on Twitter.

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