GERMANY COACH JOACHIM LOEW has said Holland will not repeat the mistakes they made in their shock defeat to Denmark when the Germans take on the Dutch in Wednesday’s key Euro 2012 clash.
Germany play Holland in Kharkiv, Ukraine, in Group B with the Dutch needing a win to keep their Euro 2012 dreams alive after losing 1-0 to Denmark on Saturday in their opening game.
Having already beaten Portugal 1-0 thanks to a second-half header from striker Mario Gomez, another victory for Germany will all but put Loew’s team in the quarter-finals, but the German coach says he expects a tough battle.
“Clearly, the challenge is huge for the Netherlands,” said Loew.
“When you’ve lost the first game, you can no longer afford another defeat. They allowed themselves to be rushed against Denmark and they will not let that happen again.”
Loew said Holland’s defeat by Denmark has done little to influence his preparations for one of the key clashes of the group stages with daytime temperatures of 33 degrees Celsius (94 Fahrenheit) forecasted in Kharkiv.
Germany dominated the Dutch in a 3-0 friendly win in Hamburg last November, with both sides missing key players, and Loew said Wednesday’s match will be an entirely different proposition with so much at stake.
“I don’t think it’ll play a role, we had players missing and they had three or four out, the style of play as far as both teams are concerned is clear,” said Loew. “We know each other’s systems, strengths and weaknesses.
“It will be a close game, as always. The Dutch are very fast in their attack, but it is all or nothing for the Netherlands.
“If you lose the first game, you can’t lose the next or it is goodbye.”
Having opted for youth over experience against Portugal, Loew said he may only make slight changes to his winning team.
Arsenal centre-half Per Mertesacker, who missed three months at the end of the Premier League season after ankle surgery, was left out for Borussia Dortmund’s Mats Hummels, who produced a stellar display against Portugal.
Veteran striker Miroslav Klose also began on the bench as Gomez started, rewarding Loew’s faith after he scored 41 goals in all competitions for Bayern Munich last season.
“I’m not one to say we do not change a winning team, so it is always possible that there are changes to make here and there,” said Loew.
“I’ll make my final decisions after training on Tuesday.”