Germany may be forced to play four central defenders against Portugal

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/jun/13/germany-four-central-defenders-portugal

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Injuries have depleted Germany’s defence in such a way that their opening match against Portugal may see four central defenders in the starting lineup, with two of them out of position and two who have rarely played together.

The coach Joachim Löw did not seem unduly worried on Friday about the prospect, confirming that his back four may feature four central defenders.

The captain and right-back Philipp Lahm could move into the midfield, with Jérôme Boateng taking his place in Monday’s Group G match. The left-back position could go to Benedikt Höwedes, while Mats Hummels and Per Mertesacker would be the central defenders.

But Löw could be hiding his cards. With Lahm as right-back, his two central defenders could be Mertesacker and Boateng, who have played together more often than Mertesacker and Hummels. The latter two have looked uncomfortable on occasions.

“We do have a little problem there,” Löw acknowledged.

Boateng sees himself as a central defender and feels more comfortable in that position than on the flank.

Höwedes is not a natural left-back either. That position has been a source of worry for Löw for a long time. Marcel Schmelzer was ruled out of the World Cup with a knee injury and his place went to Borussia Dortmund team-mate Erik Durm. But Durm is a newcomer, who started out as a forward and was retrained as a defender by Dortmund’s coach, Jürgen Klopp, to replace the injured Schmelzer.

Lahm could be needed in a defensive midfield position as there are doubts about Bastian Schweinsteiger’s fitness following a knee injury, while Sami Khedira also sat out six months with a knee injury.