England vs Germany: A friendly by no means

"They think it's all over...it is now! These were the words expressed by the BBC's Kenneth Wolstenholme as fans made their way to the turf of the Old Wembley Stadium just seconds prior to Geoff Hurst's World Cup-winning goal as England were the victors of the 1966 tournament in a 4-2 victory over West Germany. At that time, England were officially the best national team in the world. Times have changed since. However, the rivalry remains the same.

The rivalry goes back all the way to the Christmas Day Truce of 1914, when the First World War was in its beginning months. English and German troops called an unofficial truce, exchanging gifts with one another, and playing a match which the Germans won 3-2. Although the truce was a great gesture between the two sides, it didn't last very long. Just days later, the two nations were once again firing bullets and bombarding at each other with no relent. The English were victorious in 1918, when the war ended. The two sides were enemies again in the Second World War too, again seeing the English triumph over the Germans. And what happens on the pitch also adds spice to the rivalry...

Hurst "scores" to put England 3-2 ahead

...In 1966, Geoff Hurst's famous and infamous "Wembley Goal" was at the centre of controversy. Hurst hit the bar and the ball, according to many, failed to cross the line. Among the 400 million viewers who watched the World Cup Final that day, it was inevitable that the English viewers would argue that it did cross the line, with German viewers resenting such a view. Goal-line technology was something which was not invented then and was at the subject of major public discussion when 44 years later, Frank Lampard's supposed equaliser did not count as Germany triumphed 4-1 in Bloemfontein, South Africa, in the 2010 World Cup's Round of 16. This time, TV replays clearly showed that the ball crossed the line, but referee Jorge Larrionda did not award the goal. For most German football fans, this piece of revenge was long awaited and was delivered after 4 long decades. But this will count for nothing on Tuesday night... 

One to watch: Julian Draxler

...The encounter between the two sides will be the first time the sides have met since that humiliating and controversial defeat for England in Bloemfontein. For Roy Hodgson, whose side lost 2-0 to Chile on Friday night thanks to two great goals by Barcelona's Alexis Sanchez, this game will be yet another test as he prepares to draw up his initial list for his 23-man squad that will be on the plane to Brazil for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in June. Captain Steven Gerrard should be back from injury, with Hodgson expected to start Gerrard's Liverpool team mate Daniel Sturridge, as well as Wayne Rooney and potentially Kyle Walker. Germany on the other hand, are without their midfield talisman Bastian Schweinsteiger, who did not feature in the team's 1-1 draw over Italy which also took place on Friday evening. Joachim Low has stated that Manuel Neuer, Philipp Lahm and Mesut Ozil will not play the match and will instead experiment other players. Julian Draxler, Schalke 04's 20-year-old attacking midfielder, can pose a major threat from the middle of the field and can conjure up an attack from anywhere. He will be competing with Toni Kroos, Thomas Muller and Mario Gotze for a place in Low's starting 11.

Germany are by far the stronger and more talented team and are likely candidates alongside Brazil, Argentina and Spain to be the winners of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Rio de Janeiro on the 13th of July next year. Nevertheless, England will use this match as an experiment to see how they can fare against stronger sides in next year's World Cup. Furthermore, players such as Adam Lallana, Jay Rodriguez, Kieran Gibbs, Ross Barkley and Andros Townsend will have the chance, if played, to show that just like the Germans, the English can still produce talent which has the potential to have world-class status.


CREDITS:

Picture of Geoff Hurst's "Wembley Goal":
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/55/Ghost_Goal_World_Cup_1966.jpg

Picture of Julian Draxler:
http://media.bundesliga.com/media/images/02_international/dfb-team/draxler_ball_692.jpg