Marco Reus among players left off of Germany’s roster for World Cup tune-up games
By Adam Stocker
Germany manager Joachim Low decided not to call up Marco Reus, Mario Gotze and other big name German players ahead of friendlies against Spain and Brazil.
When healthy, Marco Reus is arguably the best German player in the world. Staying, healthy, however, has been a problem. Since winning German Footballer of the Year in 2012, injuries have prevented the winger from representing his country at both the 2014 World Cup and Euro 2016, and as Die Mannschaft prepare for their last two friendlies before Joachim Low must name his provisional World Cup squad, Reus will once again be watching at home.
This time, Reus isn’t injured, but Low suggested he wants to give the Borussia Dortmund player time to get back up to speed before recalling him to the national team. That’s a smart move, but it would be a mistake to leave him off the World Cup roster if he stays fit. Reus offers the sort of speed and power out wide that could be big difference makers at the World Cup.
Reus isn’t the only big name not selected by Low. His Dortmund teammates Andre Schurrle, Mario Gotze and Julian Weigl were also left out. Schurrle set up Gotze for the winning goal against Argentina at the last World Cup, but both players have struggled with injuries and consistency over the last 18 months.
Schurrle rarely played in the first half of the Bundesliga season, but has seen his playing time and level of play increase since Peter Stoger took over as manager. Gotze missed most of last season with a metabolic disorder, but despite recent improvements looks unlikely to fulfill the immense promise he showed as a teenager. As for Weigl, he’s perhaps the best young holding midfielder in the Bundesliga, strong in possession and as a ball-winner. The Dortmund trio will need a strong finish to the season if they’re going to make it Russia.
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The biggest names outside the Bundesliga to miss out were Juventus’ Benedikt Howedes and Arsenal’s Shkodran Mustafi. Howedes has been an integral part of Low’s defense over the past four years, playing as both a center-back and full-back in 2014 and 2016. That versatility has become even more versatile as Low as experimented with a back three, but injuries have limited the former Schalke captain to only one Serie A game in 2017-18. Mustafi, who has been Low’s preferred backup to Jerome Boateng and Mats Hummels, may have played his way out of contention with a poor season for Arsenal.
Perhaps, with time running out before he must name his World Cup squad, Low wants to prioritize players he’s seen less of than the likes of Mustafi, Schurrle and Gotze. Or perhaps this is yet more evidence of the immense strength in depth Germany possess. No manager has a harder to decision on who to select for the World Cup than Low.