I was excited for the Portugal game, I’m about to lose it before this USA-Germany game. Both teams have everything to play for, and if we believe Klinsmann at all, that’s the way it will play out. So, let’s walk through this together The Manaus Effect The U.S. is coming from Manaus, the horrid weather and travel destination out of the heart of the Amazon. All 4 previous teams to play there have lost their next game. But when did that become an excuse. Jurgen has been ready for this for 3 years now, and I don’t have the mental capacity to keep track of how many times he said the U.S. would have outstanding fitness coming into this World Cup. The Mental Battle Both teams have a strong need to get a result out of this game, because everybody wants to control their own destiny. But more importantly, with Germany’s result against Ghana, the US performance against Portugal, and the U.S friendly win over Germany a year ago, both teams should believe this will be a very competitive match.

The Game & Key Factors

All right let’s get to the game, not the excuses. U.S. Tactics Against Ghana, the U.S. played in a defensive shell, and the U.S. seemed to come out of that shell against Portugal. I am curious to find out if these were strong Jurgen tactics, or if they were possibly the result of early goals. My main concern is that sitting back against a more technical German side might get us punished. Cleaning up the Trash Here comes the bias; 4 out of the 6 German goals so far in this World Cup have been absolute garbage. Muller preys on defensive mistakes, and I remember a header off a knee that lucked its way into the back of the net against Ghana. So, in an ode to the Mighty Ducks, the U.S. need to make sure that they clean up the trash in front of the net. (I promised I wouldn’t bring up the Cameron/Portugal moment, but this would be a great place). Fabian Johnson Fabian Johnson is an absolute stud. He looks like Di Maria in his attacking prowess. The slalom runs he puts together are difficult against any opponent, and he looks comfortable doing it. I don’t see any reason to believe he’ll slow down against his familiar German counterparts, and I’m excited to see what he can do. I think a good portion of the US attack will come through him, and he should have a great performance. Center Midfield As bad as Michael Bradley has been accused of playing, Philipp Lahm has been playing just as terrible, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see it continue against the high-intensity play of Bradley, Jones and Beckerman. Lahm is crucial to this German team, and continual sloppy play could afford the US quite a few chances. Aerial Play Both the U.S & Germany have enjoyed dominant aerial play. The only decent German goals came off corners, and the U.S have largely been comfortable in the air, especially against the barrage of crosses from Ghana. If they can keep the Germans from scoring out of the air, I like our compact middlefield in keeping the ball out wide and not allowing them to work anything through the middle. Dempsey – World Class All I heard going in to the Portugal game was Messi, Neymar, Robben have showed up in Brazil, now its time for Ronaldo. I think Dempsey deserves this company His history in Europe, and his nonstop stellar play for the U.S. deserves the highest praise. I think the U.S. needs to start making some controversial statements such as these, and start demanding some world recognition. My Predictions Dempsey outscores Muller. The U.S. gets up on Germany by halftime and doen’t relinquish the lead. US: 2 – GER: 1