HENRY WINTER
July 5, 2010

CAPE TOWN: There is flair within the framework of Joachim Loew's well-organised Germany, a quality usually witnessed in the clever touches and movement of Mesut Oezil but here seen thrillingly out wide with Thomas Mueller and Lukas Podolski.

Bastian Schweinsteiger was man of an extraordinary match in Cape Town on Saturday, driving through the middle time and again and causing constant problems for Argentina. But the space was created by the clever stretching exercise conducted by Mueller and Podolski. Gabriel Heinze was constantly outrun by Mueller. Podolski so tormented Nicolas Otamendi that when Diego Maradona removed his right fullback midway through the second half, it almost appeared an act of mercy.

''I told my young players they were faster than them and, if you keep them under pressure, players like Heinze would struggle,'' Loew said. ''We did that and took their defence apart completely.''

The one sadness for the Germans was that Mueller's booking for a handball rules him out of the semi-final. ''The fact we won't have Mueller is a serious blow,'' added Loew. ''He's shown just how dangerous he is. He's everywhere on the pitch. I saw the incident where he was shown the yellow card, and I really don't see why he's booked. The ball touched his thigh and then his arm at a very short distance, so I question the yellow card. But we'll replace him and go forward.''

Germany certainly went forward on Saturday, wave after counter-attacking wave washing away Argentina's top-heavy structure. The heart went out to poor Javier Mascherano, Argentina's sole defensive midfielder who resembled a fireman fighting a large blaze with a short hose. Argentina were destroyed by the speed of thought and body of the Germans. Any hope Maradona had of getting his wingers, Angel Di Maria and Maxi Rodriguez, going was thwarted by Mueller and Podolski. Argentina's wings were well and truly clipped.

What was immediately apparent in the Green Point Stadium was the understanding between the German pairs out wide, between Mueller and Philipp Lahm and between Podolski and Jerome Boateng. They operated as teams, hounding Di Maria and Rodriguez, who became so frustrated they switched halfway through the opening period. To no avail.

Argentina's wingers were suffocated, their space invaded by Mueller and Podolski, just as Lionel Messi was snuffed out by Germans working in packs. The odds of Messi, Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo departing the World Cup with one goal between them would have been long a month ago. Mueller now has four.

He soon struck in Cape Town, recording the 200th goal that Germany (and West Germany) have scored in World Cup finals. Podolski set the stage, his quick feet winning a free kick from Otamendi, whose foul brought Schweinsteiger jogging over. His delivery of the dead-ball was perfect, dropping nicely for Mueller to flick a header past the hesitant Sergio Romero. One of the greatest results in World Cup history was under way.

Podolski continued to torment Otamendi, such energy also flowing through Germany's versatile holding players, Sami Khedira and Schweinsteiger. One moment Schweinsteiger was ushering Messi down a cul-de-sac and mugging him of the ball, the next he was dispossessing Rodriguez and Di Maria in quick succession.

Schweinsteiger, Mueller, Podolski and all of Loew's players understood the demands of their 4-2-3-1 system. If Lahm ventured upfield, Mueller covered the right-back area. The speed and stamina of Loew's wide players was exceptional, stirringly witnessed after 20 minutes when Mueller tracked back to nick the ball off Carlos Tevez.

Germany's wingers were always helping out defensively, always quick to break upfield. When Heinze lost the ball to Mueller, the Bayern Munich man raced into the box and swept a pinpoint cutback to Miroslav Klose, who shot wastefully over.

On the bench, Loew screamed in frustration. His wingers swiftly calmed him