Little more than 14 hours after the disappointing 2-1 (1-0) defeat by Croatia in their second group match at the 2008 UEFA European Championship™ the German national coach Joachim Loew was still affected by the disaster. “The disappointment is deep. And it will continue because this defeat was absolutely justified. In this match we never discovered our basic game, we were incapable of judging the pace. The cooperation and the attitude were totally unsatisfactory”, was Loew’s criticism of his team’s performance. He announced there would be a different approach for the decisive Group B match against Austria in Vienna on Monday. And he hinted there could be selection changes.

The German team were stopped halfway on what they saw as a mountaineering tour with intentions to reach peak. They are now facing a new ascent with the match against Austria taking on the character of a final. After the 2-0 win over Poland and the 2-1 loss to Croatia, the Germans need one point to reach the quarter-finals. But the situation is precarious, for after their 1-1 draw with Poland the joint host team of UEFA EURO 2008™ could prevent their German neighbours from finishing second in the group if they beat them. “We know the explosive consequences and expect 11 Austrians to run for their lives. They have the unique opportunity to reach the quarter-finals if they win. It will be a very tough game”, said Loew.

The 48-year-old increased the internal pressure in order to prevent the obvious mistakes made on this black day in Klagenfurt from occurring again against the Austrians. “The attitude will change, and the starting line-up most probably also”, Loew disclosed. Loew wants to change his team not just because of injuries to Philipp Lahm (bruised calf), Marcell Jansen (pulled shoulder muscle) and Lukas Podolski (injured ankle joint). He didn’t like anything about the performance which brought only the third defeat under his jurisdiction. “It is too early yet to say what changes I’m going to make. But you may assume that we will think of something”, he explained. Bastian Schweinsteiger, who was shown a red card for unsporting behaviour against Jerko Leko in injury time, will be available for the quarter-finals since he received the minimum ban of one match from UEFA.

Jansen, who was substituted by David Odonkor at halftime, may have played himself out of the team. Clemens Fritz and Mario Gomez could be also doubtful, and the national coach might even consider removing Christoph Metzelder from the central defending position. He once again praised the defending alternatives Arne Friedrich and Heiko Westermann for their good performances in training on Friday. Then shortly afterwards he was told that Westermann had sustained a ruptured ligament and a chipped bone in his right hand when playing handball during later training. The plaster which the Schalke player is now wearing makes it impossible for him to play immediately. The chances now suggest that Tim Borowski, Thomas Hitzlsperger and Arne Friedrich may be called into the starting side.

On Friday, Loew confronted his players with a no nonsense reappraisal of the disaster. The defence looked shaky when Darijo Srna scored to make it 1-0. With the second Croatian goal, scored by Ivica Olic, the defenders also failed to prevent the long pass from Ivan Rakitic. The deflected ball hit the post, leaving goalkeeper Jens Lehmann to dive in vain, and allowed Olic to master the ball. Later Lukas Podolski scored for 2-1, but the German team failed to follow up with serious attacking in the final stage.

Loew demands the return to playing perfection, to combination football with attacking brilliance. “Discipline and the willingness to run are basics, but I want to see playing solutions which were missing against the Croats”, said Loew. He reiterated his team’s strong points – when they function. “We proved that the team are capable of showing a reaction”, and he showed confidence that the elimination from the tournament will be prevented in Vienna. “We may not forget that our team have their strong points. The defeat by Croatia was a setback, but it will not throw us off track. We shall reach the quarter-finals, we will get further”, Klinsmann’s successor forecast.