Germany did very well, it's not easy to be consistent at this level, but they have been very consistent for the past few tournaments, i.e. Runners-up in 2002, 3rd 2006, 3rd 2010. They'd be one of the favourites for Euro 2012 and WC 2014, with the likes of Mueller, Badstuber, Aogo, Boateng, Ozil, Kiessling, Neuer, Kroos, et al providing the backbone in addition to more youngsters coming in then.

Losing to Spain was hard to take, especially when they were doing great v the likes of England, Argentina, Australia, etc. You can see from the off that they were too scared of the occasion and did not do much to overcome that fear. Burden of expectation was heavy on the young shoulders, and the loss of Mueller was not helping as the team had already grew used to him darting from the right with his runs. However, having said that, I'd expect this crop of youngsters to shine even more in Euro 2012 if not WC 2014, especially if they keep performing to the highest level at their respective clubs. We'd need another top striker though, and Kiessling looks set to lead the line for Germany now, ably supported by the likes of Bastian, Mueller, Kroos, etc.

Definitely a team to look out for, especially for the next 2 tournaments.

Having said that, congratulations to Mueller for scooping the Best Young Player and Golden Boot awards, one of the more deserving recipient of these 2 awards.