Holders of the most coveted team trophy in sport, Germany head to Russia for their World Cup defence in a little bit of bother, having failed to win any of their five friendlies since they qualified for the finals with a perfect record of ten wins out of ten.
The quest for a record-equalling fifth star, and a first successful World Cup defence in 56 years, will be led once again by Joachim Löw, who, having been assistant to Jürgen Klinsmann at Germany’s home World Cup in 2006, has steered the Nationalmannschaft to the semi-finals (at worst) of every one of the six major tournaments that he has overseen.
Having led a second-string side to victory in last summer’s Confederations Cup, Löw will have no fears of what lies ahead in Russia. Indeed, thanks to that handy, confidence-boosting preparation 12 months ago, every single member of his chosen 23-man World Cup party has some form of major tournament experience (including nine veterans of the 2014 triumph in Brazil).
That would also have been the case had one of them been left out to make room for Leroy Sané, whose controversial non-selection, after such a majestic season with Manchester City, almost beggars belief.
I have carried out some detailed research on all 23 members of Löw’s squad and come up with some interesting facts and curios that you will find below.
Similar information has been compiled on the other 13 European teams in the build-up to the Big Kick-off on Thursday, June 14. Several are already on the site.
Here is the Germany squad with the players’ current club, caps and goals:
Goalkeepers
Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich, 75/0), Marc-André ter Stegen (Barcelona, 19/0), Kevin Trapp (Paris-SG, 3/0)
Defenders
Jérôme Boateng (Bayern Munich, 70/1), Matthias Ginter (Borussia Mönchengladbach, 17/0), Jonas Hector (Cologne, 37/3), Mats Hummels (Bayern Munich, 63/5), Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich, 28/3), Marvin Plattenhardt (Hertha Berlin, 6/0), Antonio Rüdiger (Chelsea, 24/1), Niklas Süle (Bayern Munich, 10/0)
Midfielders
Julian Brandt (Bayer Leverkusen, 15/1), Julian Draxler (Paris-SG, 43/6), Leon Goretzka (Schalke, 15/6), İlkay Gündoğan (Manchester City, 25/4), Sami Khedira (Juventus, 74/7), Toni Kroos (Real Madrid, 82/12), Mesut Özil (Arsenal, 90/23), Sebastian Rudy (Bayern Munich, 25/1)
Forwards
Mario Gomez (VfB Stuttgart, 74/31), Thomas Müller (Bayern Munich, 90/38), Marco Reus (Borussia Dortmund, 30/9), Timo Werner (RB Leipzig, 13/7)
The total number of international caps gained by the 23 players is 928. The number of caps gained in competitive fixtures (i.e. World Cup, Euro and Confederations Cup matches) is 566. The number of caps gained at final tournaments (Confederations Cup included) is 235. The number of caps gained at the World Cup finals is 86.
The total number of international goals scored by the 23 players is 158. The number of goals scored in competitive fixtures is 114. The number of goals scored at final tournaments is 36. The number of goals scored at the World Cup finals is 18.
The number of players in the squad appearing at their first final tournament is 0. The number of players appearing at their first World Cup is 13.
There are 13 survivors from the victorious 2017 Confederations Cup squad: Ter Stegen, Trapp, Ginter, Hector, Kimmich, Plattenhardt, Rüdiger, Süle, Brandt, Draxler, Goretzka, Rudy, Werner
There are 12 survivors from the Euro 2016 squad: Neuer, Ter Stegen, Boateng, Hector, Hummels, Kimmich, Draxler, Khedira, Kroos, Özil, Gomez, Müller
There are 9 survivors from the triumphant 2014 World Cup squad: Neuer, Boateng, Ginter, Hummels, Draxler, Khedira, Kroos, Özil, Müller
There are 10 survivors from the Euro 2012 squad: Neuer, Boateng, Hummels, Gündoğan, Khedira, Kroos, Özil, Gomez, Müller, Reus.
There are 7 survivors from the 2010 World Cup squad: Neuer, Boateng, Khedira, Kroos, Özil, Gomez, Müller.
There is 1 survivor from the Euro 2008 squad: Gomez.
Seven players – Neuer, Boateng, Khedira, Kroos, Özil, Gomez and Müller – will be attending their fifth final tournament. Hummels and Draxler will be participating in their fourth, while it is a third for Ter Stegen, Ginter, Hector and Kimmich.
Mesut Özil has played the most final tournament matches: 25 (14 at the World Cup, 11 at the Euro). Indeed, he has started all of Germany’s last 25 matches at the World Cup and Euro finals (two tournaments apiece) – the only player to do so.
Neuer and Müller are close behind Özil with 24 final tournament appearances each, both with 13 at the World Cup and 11 at the Euro, with Boateng and Khedira next on 22 (both with a 12/10 split) followed by Kroos on 21 (11, 10).
Although all 23 squad members have been involved in at least one final tournament, two of them – Trapp and Gündoğan – have never made it on to the field of play.
Trapp is the only squad member yet to appear in a competitive international.
Nine players have appeared in over 25 competitive internationals. Their records are as follows:
Müller – Pld 62 W52 D6* L4 (of which at final tournaments Pld 24 W18 D3* L3)
Özil – Pld 59 W50 D4* L5 (Pld 25 W18 D3* L4)
Neuer – Pld 56 W45 D5* L6 (Pld 24 W17 D3* L4)
Kroos – Pld 52 W42 D5* L5 (Pld 21 W15 D3* L3)
Khedira – Pld 46 W40 D3* L3 (Pld 22 W16 D3* L3)
Boateng – Pld 45 W35 D5* L5 (Pld 22 W16 D3* L3)
Gomez – Pld 42 W30 D6* L6 (Pld 17 W10 D2* L5)
Hummels – Pld 37 W30 D4* L3 (Pld 15 W11 D3* L1)
Draxler – Pld 26 W20 D4* L2 (Pld 11 W7 D3* L1)
* draw followed by victory on penalties
Four of the players in the squad have won every competitive international they have played in: Goretzka (9 matches), Brandt (8), Werner (7) and Plattenhardt (3). Additionally, three more are undefeated in their competitive fixtures for Germany: Rudy (W10 D2), Ter Stegen (W8 D1) and Süle (W4 D1).
The following 13 players have a 100% win rate in World Cup matches: Draxler (14 matches), Kimmich (10), Hector (8), Ter Stegen (5), Brandt (5), Goretzka (5), Gündoğan (5), Rüdiger (3), Rudy (3), Werner (3), Ginter (2), Plattenhardt (2), Süle (1). Furthermore, Hummels is unbeaten in 17 World Cup fixtures (W16 D1) and Reus in six (W5 D1).
Although he has drawn three and lost three matches at final tournaments, Khedira has been on the winning side in all 24 of his qualifying appearances (14 World Cup, ten Euro).
Müller is the squad’s leading scorer in competitive internationals, with 30 goals. Two other players are on double figures – Özil with 18 and Gomez with 15.
Gomez’s 15 competitive international goals have also come exclusively in wins, whereas Özil is the only member of the squad to have scored a competitive goal for Germany in a defeat – a late consolation penalty in the semi-final of Euro 2012 against Italy (1-2).
Müller has scored the most goals in final tournaments (10), with every one of them having come at the World Cup – five in 2010 and five in 2014 (13 matches in total). In contrast, needless to say, he has never scored (in 11 matches) at the Euro finals.
Four other players have all scored twice at the World Cup finals – Hummels, Khedira, Kroos and Özil.
Özil has scored one goal at each of his tournament appearances – in 2010 (v Ghana), 2012 (v Italy), 2014 (v Algeria) and 2016 (v Italy again).
Kimmich was the only player to appear in all ten of Germany’s 2018 World Cup qualifiers. Müller started nine games.
Müller was Germany’s joint-top scorer in 2018 World Cup qualifying with five goals, a figure matched by the non-selected Sandro Wagner. No other player managed more than three.
Goretzka scored twice and Werner once as Germany defeated Group F rivals Mexico 4-1 in Sochi at the 2017 Confederations Cup. Also involved in that match were Ter Stegen, Ginter, Hector, Kimmich, Rüdiger, Draxler, Rudy and, from the bench, Brandt.
Özil scored on both of his appearances against Sweden (4-4 at home and 5-3 away) in the 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign. Neuer, Boateng, Kroos and Müller also played in both matches
Fifteen of the 23 players play their club football in Germany, with perennial champions Bayern Munich predictably supplying the largest contingent (seven). No other Bundesliga club is represented by more than one player.
Three of the eight foreign exiles are based in England, with two in Spain, two in France and one in Italy. The only club other than Bayern providing more than one player to Löw’s squad is Paris Saint-Germain with two.
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