When the German team played like old men past their prime

But those who watched Germany's two pre-World Cup friendlies against Austria and Saudi Arabia will not be surprised. Because Germany tonight was just as weak, lifeless, lacking any desire or determination as those two matches.

Coach Joachim Loew surprised by starting Julian Draxler on the left instead of Marco Reus, while Marvin Plattenhardt replaced the ill left-back Jonas Hector. But that squad was still more than enough quality to destroy a Mexico side without any world-class stars.

However, on the football field, things were completely different. Throughout the first half,Germany teamThey played listlessly, without any energy. The desire seemed non-existent. Mr. Loew's players walked around the field, passing the ball back and forth aimlessly.

That was the main reason for Germany's failure. Was it a psychological problem due to the chaos of the preparation for the tournament? Or was it because the German players were satisfied with the 2014 title and no longer wanted to win? It is difficult to know why.

It was the weakness that made the German players play like decrepit old men against a determined, strong and agile Mexico. In the second half, "Die Mannschaft" did try harder and play faster, but that was still not enough for them to find an equalizer.

Apart from the psychological issue, it must also be seen that Mr. Loew's tactical formation has many problems. First, the talented, sharp and creative Reus was pushed to the bench, while Draxler, who had been lackluster all season at Paris Saint-Germain, was chosen. Draxler played very ineffectively throughout the match.

Secondly, Loew continues to trust Sami Khedira despite the Juventus midfielder's poor form throughout the season. In the two friendlies before the World Cup, Khedira was also the worst player. During his time on the pitch, Khedira provided little defensive support and was completely harmless in attack.

Next is the deployment of a high defensive line (a specialty of Pep Guardiola, who Loew often learns from), especially with right-back Joshua Kimmich playing as a winger. We see Kimmich constantly leaving his position, pushing forward to attack.

As a result, Mexico repeatedly exploited the space left by Kimmich and earned a goal from a sharp counter-attack. The problem was that before Hirving Lozano scored in the 35th minute, Juan Carlos Osorio's team had made that move many times, but Loew completely failed to make any necessary adjustments.

The coach who led Germany to glory in 2014 also reacted too slowly when he did not make a substitution at the beginning of the second half, allowing Khedira to continue wasting time on the pitch until the 60th minute. Bringing Brandt on in the 86th minute was also too late.

A young and ambitious player like Brandt immediately made a difference when he came on, and almost scored with a beautiful volley. If Mr. Loew had brought Brandt on 10 minutes earlier, the fate of the champions might have been different.

And even before the match ended, many German fans on social media criticized Loew's decision to leave out young midfielder Leroy Sane. A player with great speed and skillful technique like Sane would probably make a difference compared to Draxler, Thomas Mueller or Mesut Oezil.

Looking at the German team playing this match, many people will surely think of the French team in 2002, Italy in 2006 and Spain in 2014. They were all the reigning champions of those tournaments, competing with high expectations, but all played weakly, lacked determination and were eventually eliminated in the group stage.

There are still two matches left for Mr. Loew to make amends. The first thing he needs to do is boldly change the lineup, put Reus on the field from the start and use young players like Brandt or Leon Goretzka to create new motivation and new determination for the German team.

But looking at what happened to France, Italy and Spain, perhaps fans of "The Tank" should not expect much.