A shortage of top-quality strikers is beginning to worry Germany coach Joachim Loew in a season which has seen the Bundesliga goalscorers’ list dominated by foreign imports.
Loew told Kicker sports magazine on Thursday the attack and left-side of defence were “the two positions where we have problems in Germany.”
There are no Germany strikers in the leading 10 goalscorers in the Bundesliga after 10 matches, with Bayern Munich’s Mario Gomez best placed on joint 12th with four goals.
Loew said this was not especially “a Bundesliga phenomenon” but added that there also did not appear to be any outstanding strikers coming through at junior levels.
Loew will be without the injured Miroslav Klose and Stefan Kiessling for a friendly against Sweden in Gothenburg on November 17 but on-form Gomez and Stuttgart’s Cacau should be available.
Bayer Leverkusen’s Patrick Helmes is also likely to feature now that he has fully recovered from a cruciate ligament tear which disrupted his career last season.
“I rate him a lot because he is a very strong finisher who doesn’t need a lot of chances,” Loew said.
“One shouldn’t forget that he was out injured for a long time. He deserves a chance. I think he will be back.”
Gomez, scorer of a hat-trick in Bayern’s 4-0 win at Cluj in the Champions League on Wednesday, has not been a first choice for Germany recently but is a striker “of international format,” said Loew.
“If he plays regularly he will show these qualities. Strikers in particular need confidence.”
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