Germany will begin their 2022 World Cup campaign against Japan on Wednesday and the European heavyweight will look to grab all 3 points when they line up at the Khalifa international stadium in Doha.
This will be Hansi Flick’s first major competition as the manager of Germany, and he will want to make sure his squad leaves a lasting impression.
Die Mannschaft hasn’t exactly dazzled with its efforts in 2022, as Flick’s squad has only managed two victories in nine games.
Japan finished behind Saudi Arabia in second place in their World Cup qualification campaign and has been inconsistent over the past year.
The Asian giants slumped to a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Canada last week and will need to bounce back in this fixture.
Kick-off: 14:00 G.M.T
Venue: Khalifa international stadium.
Venue: Khalifa international stadium.
Germany Team news
Germany has one major injury problem heading into the contest against Japan, with Leroy Sane struggling with a knee issue.
Timo Werner and Marco Reus missed out on the tournament with injuries, but Flick will have all of his key players fit and ready for the World Cup apart from that.
Japan Team News
Japan’s tactical versatility is one of their most valued assets as a team, and their ability to play in transitional moments and disrupt heavy-possession teams is supremely valued in this matchup with Germany. The Japanese could choose to sit deeper and use their physical style to impose themselves on the more technically sound Germans.
Germany predicted lineup (4-2-3-1):
Neuer; Kehrer, Sule, Rüdiger, Raum; Kimmich, Goretzka; Hofmann, Musiala, Gnabry; Muller.
Japan predicted lineup (4-2-3-1):
Gonda; Sakai, Tomiyasu, Yoshida, Nagatomo; Morita, Shibasaki; Ito, Kamada, Kubo; Minamino
Odds/prediction
Germany will have enough to see off Japan although the Asian giants are not pushovers.
A keenly contested match that might slightly be a 2-1 win for Germany. Punters can be confident of over 2.5 in this encounter.
