Schweinsteiger Says He Has a "Good Feeling" About the Final Game

07/16/2014 - 10h53

Bastian Schweinsteiger does not hide his nervousness of Sunday's game (June 13) at Maracanã, when Germany can win its 4th world title.

"I have a good feeling. But we have to take all our skills on the field", he analyzed.

The confidence he shows seemed unlikely a month ago. The team that enters as a favorite at Maracanã arrived in Brazil in shambles.

Five of the starters in the final were recovering from injuries: goalkeeper Neuer, defensive midfielders Schweinsteiger and Khedira, midfielder Özil and striker Klose. Attacking midfielder Reus was cut due to injury.

In their debut, a 4-0 rout of Portugal disguised the weaknesses of the team, which became clear in the draw to Ghana (2-2) and in the narrow victory over the U.S. (1-0).

The turning point came in the second half of the game against Algeria, when the captain Lahm left the midfield and went over to the right side.

Until then, Löw opted for a controversial line of four backs on defense, shifting Boateng to the right and Höwedes to the left. When the captain returned to the side and Khedira and Schweinsteiger gained a rythym - the former only entered as a starter in the third game - Germany took off. They beat France and destroyed Brazil.

Oliver Bierhoff, the national team's technical director, joked about the rollercoaster.

"The 7-1 score against Brazil was atypical, it can never be repeated. After the game against Algeria, they said that we were the worst in the world, and now it's like we're already raising the trophy."

Translated by STEVE HUGHES