By Oliver Trust
BERLIN, Sept. 7 (Xinhua) -- The goalless draw against 2018 World Cup winners France in the newly-formed Nations League was a first hopeful step forward for a struggling German side on its long way back to former glories. Facing the current world champions was a tough assignment for Joachim Loew's side after their disastrous performance in Russia.
"Back-to-basics" was the German coach's cure for his insecure team. It was a philosophy which not only had to satisfy the fans by showing team-spirit but help players find their way back to a well-balanced defense.
Loew returned to tactics similar to the ones that led them to success at the 2014 World Cup. He once again used a defense made up of four central defenders. In Brazil, the German back four was called the "Ox defense" by the German media.
Relief couldn't have been greater after German fans cheered the team from the start and welcomed the squad.
"It must have tons taken off their shoulders," former German international Oliver Kahn commented. The 49-year-old called the 0-0 draw the first step toward regaining consistency.
Other than the traditional 4-2-3-1 system Germany also used a 4-1-4-1 system which gave the side more confidence. Right back Joshua Kimmich worked well as a traditional No. 6 just in front of the defense and as a back-up for the midfield-leader Toni Kroos. Kimmich was Germany's best performer.
Kroos must have been reminded of similar tactics at his club Real Madrid as Brazilian Casemiro does exactly the same thing at the Bernebeu.
Germany by no means dominated their opponents but managed to create more chances in the second half.
Loew called the performance "satisfying" adding "it will be a long process of development, but everyone was willing to give all he had."
Germany started the game with eleven players that were in the team in 2014; not one newcomer was picked. Nico Schulz (TSG Hoffenheim), Thilo Kehrer (Paris St Germain) and Kai Havertz (Bayer Leverkusen) will all get their chances in the friendly against Peru this Sunday.
In the first game after the World Cup, Loew said it was essential to have experience on the pitch. "Now we have a solid basis to work on," Loew added.
Bayern striker Thomas Mueller, the third striker alongside Marco Reus (Borussia Dortmund) and Timo Werner (RB Leipzig), stressed just how important it was "to keep a clean sheet' and "show that a real heart is beating in our chest."
There was not much between the two attacks. Statistics showed that Germany had more shots on target in its most active 25 minutes (10) in the second half than France did in the entire game (8).
Bayern Munich defender Mats Hummels said the coach has gained new respect within the team as he took the blame for the poor performance in Russia.
Hummels praised the "good structure in their game" and the team's willingness to withstand the enormous pressure.
If the German team continues to perform in the next games as they did against France, discussions about Loew's future will disappear.
The German media mentioned the positive aspects of the performance and that the entire starting eleven sang the national anthem for the first time in years.
