You'll never please everyone when putting together a World Cup squad, but Jogi Löw seems to have upset just about everyone. Torsten Frings had first pop, claiming he'd had the decision to retire from international football made for him by the national boss and Dieter Hoeness, the Wolfsburg sporting director, soon jumped in saying he was bewildered by the omission of all his players. Christian Gentner, for one, can be particularly irked as he's been one ray of consistency in a difficult season for Die Wolfe.
Kevin Kuranyi's return to form has been overlooked in favour of Polish-born goal-shy duo Miroslav Klose and Lukas Podolski. Goalkeeper has been an area of focus and one-time front runner Rene Adler has, like so many crosses in the back half of the season, been dropped. Manuel Neuer looks first pick while the veteran Hans-Jorg Butt and Bremen's eccentric Tim Wiese provide back-up. Elsewhere, there's a vote of confidence for youth with Mesut Ozil, Marko Marin, Holger Badstuber and Thomas Muller among the new generation. There's experience too with Michael Ballack included - the only member of the squad playing his club football outside Germany - and Brazilian-born Cacau makes the cut after impressing with Stuttgart.
The squad in full:
Goalkeepers: Hans-Jorg Butt (Bayern), Manuel Neuer (Schalke), Tim Wiese (Bremen)
Defenders: Per Mertesacker (Bremen), Heiko Westermann (Schalke), Philipp Lahm (Bayern), Jerome Boateng (Hamburg), Andreas Beck (Hoffenheim), Arne Friedrich (Hertha), Serdar Tasci (Stuttgart), Marcell Jansen (Hamburg), Holger Badstuber (Bayern), Dennis Aogo (Hamburg).
Midfielders: Michael Ballack (Chelsea), Sami Khedira (Stuttgart), Piotr Trochowski (Hamburg), Marko Marin (Bremen), Bastian Schweinsteiger (Bayern), Christian Trasch (Stuttgart), Mesut Ozil (Bremen), Toni Kroos (Bayern).
Forwards: Lukas Podolski (Cologne), Miroslav Klose (Bayern), Stefan Kiessling (Leverkusen), Cacau (Stuttgart), Thomas Muller (Bayern), Mario Gomez (Bayern).
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