LOEW: WE CAN ( STILL) BE HERROES

Germany coach insists he still trusts his under-pressure stars to do the business

Germany v Sweden Group F, today, 7pm FROM NEIL MOXLEY

JOACHIM LOEW is standing by his under-fire players, insisting: We haven’t become a bad team overnight.

On the eve of a game with Sweden which could see the world champions dumped out of the tournament, the long-serving manager said his faith remained strong.

Germany were buried under an avalanche of criticism following their shock opening 1-0 loss to Mexico.

The backlash has been felt all week, but Loew went on the front foot, dismissed the defeat as a “hiccup” and insisted there was no need to worry.

Asked if he was losing confidence in his main players, he replied: ‘No, why should that be the case?

“We are all subject to criticism but my deep trust in players who have been playing well for three or four years will not be shaken by a single match.

“OK, we had this hiccup against Mexico but we have been successful during that time. We shouldn’t be doubting our talent.

“As title-holders and Confederation Cup winners, the situation we face is a difficult one.

“Everyone is highly motivated to beat us. It’s very difficult to keep up the motivation and hunger. Not many teams have defended their title.

“Spain weren’t able to in 2014. It’s clearly not easy.”

There has been plenty of speculation that Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil will be axed from Germany’s starting line-up today.

Much of the flak was directed at him, but with Mats Hummels sidelined with a neck problem, it is more likely that Julian Draxler will make way for Marco Reus instead.

Loew, who has been in charge since 2006, suggested he may need more than brawn to prise open the Sweden defence, giving Ozil a reprieve. He said: “Everyone wanted to join in going forward against Mexico.

“All of them were criticised for it. That’s normal.

“I don’t need to talk about individuals.

“However, I have my own opinion on Mesut and everyone knows I hold him in high esteem.

“We will need people who can go deep into the opposition’s box. The whole forward line didn’t do that against Mexico.

“We can’t believe that by pinging the ball into the box we will score. Sweden will feel safe if that happens.

“They are passionate, committed, highly-organised. There’s very little space.

“They have conceded 0.5 goals per match. They are used to conceding few and that means we have to create.

“And if we do win we're right back in the race.”