GERMANY: Germany soccer squad prepares for friendly against Sweden and state president awards them highest sporting honour

Germany coach Joachim Loew will have to cope without captain Michael Ballack and his two first-choice centre backs in a friendly against Sweden in Gelsenkirchen on Wednesday (August 16). Respected tactician Loew played a big part in putting former coach Juergen Klinsmann's attacking philosophy into practice at the World Cup and the 46-year-old deserves a lot of the credit for the team's third place finish. The German Football Association certainly thought so, and appointed him to the top job after Klinsmann's decision to walk away rather than lead the side through to Euro 2008. Loew's task is to maintain the attacking momentum, but it will be no great surprise if the performance on Wednesday fails to provide the sort of intensity that marked the World Cup campaign. The Bundesliga season is just a few days old, but Loew has already been hit by a series of injuries, notably the hip problem suffered by midfielder Ballack in his new club Chelsea's defeat by Liverpool on Sunday. Loew will ask Tim Borowski to fill in for Ballack and attempt to display the range of incisive passing he is renowned for at Werder Bremen. Germany beat Sweden in the second round at the World Cup thanks to outstanding performances from Miroslav Klose and Lukas Podolski up front. Podolski was left out of the starting line-up for Bayern Munich's first league game, but Loew will keep faith with the player. The players were presented with the country's highest sporting honour by German President Horst Koehler on Monday.

ITN Source | August 15, 2006

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