One of international football's greatest rivalries will enter its next chapter on Friday night when Germany host bitter rivals Netherlands at the Volksparkstadion in Hamburg.

The two footballing giants both trail Northern Ireland in the Group C standings of Euro 2020 qualification, although they also boast games in hand and Germany would claim top spot with victory in this match.

Match preview

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The reverse fixture between these two sides marked a welcome return to form for Germany following a disappointing Nations League campaign and disastrous 2018 World Cup.

Between the end of October 2017 and March of this year, the four-time world champions won just four of 16 matches across all competitions, including a group-stage World Cup exit, Nations League relegation and defeats to the likes of Austria, Mexico and South Korea.

Joachim Low's side subsequently plunged to number 16 in the world rankings - their lowest since 2005 - but the decision to keep faith with the long-serving World Cup-winning manager appears to be paying dividends with three wins out of three in Euro 2020 qualifying so far.

An 8-0 drubbing of Estonia last time out means that only one team has scored more than them in all of qualifying so far, which is especially impressive considering they have played one game fewer than most.

Friday's match is Germany's game in hand, and victory would be enough to lift them above group leaders and fellow 100% record holders Northern Ireland, who they will then face in Belfast on Monday.

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Netherlands, by contrast, have only played twice in the qualifying campaign so far courtesy of their involvement in the UEFA Nations League Finals in June.

The most recent of those qualifying matches was the last-gasp defeat at the hands of Friday's opponents in Amsterdam, and they will be desperate to gain revenge on their fiercest of international rivals on their own turf.

Ronald Koeman will be hoping that his side have adequately recovered from the disappointment of losing the Nations League final against Portugal last time out, having beaten England in extra time in the semi-finals.

There will certainly be no secrets when it comes to facing Germany, with Friday's game being the fourth time Netherlands have met Die Mannschaft in their last nine outings.

Defeat, however, would leave the Oranje already nine points adrift of both Germany and Northern Ireland in Group C and, while facing the group favourites twice in their opening three matches does make for a kinder fixture list going forward, that is a lot of ground to make up in the last four games.

Not since their third-place finish at the 2014 World Cup have Netherlands graced a major international tournament, and despite the presence of a number of star names they could be in very real danger of missing a third consecutive summer showpiece.

Germany form: WDDWWW

Netherlands form: WDWLWL

Team News

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Leroy Sane opened the scoring when the two sides met in March, but he will miss the majority of the coming season after suffering knee ligament damage.

Germany are also without Julian Draxler and Leon Goretzka to leave them relatively short in attack, with the uncapped Luca Waldschmidt - a star of this summer's Under-21 European Championship - joining Timo Werner as the only recognised centre-forward in the squad.

Serge Gnabry has played up front in the past too, though, while the likes of Kai Havertz and Marco Reus provide other options for Low.

Juventus midfielder Emre Can is included in the squad despite missing out on his club's Champions League roster for the 2019-20 group stages.

Netherlands, meanwhile, boast arguably the best defensive partnership in international football with Matthijs de Ligt alongside captain and newly-crowned UEFA Player of the Year Virgil van Dijk.

Barcelona's Frenkie de Jong and Liverpool's Georginio Wijnaldum are both named in the squad too, while up front Memphis Depay is expected to lead the line.

Germany possible starting lineup:
Neuer; Ginter, Sule, Tah; Kehrer, Kimmich, Kroos, Schulz; Gnabry, Werner, Reus

Netherlands possible starting lineup:
Cillessen; Dumfries, De Ligt, Van Dijk, Blind; Wijnaldum, De Jong, De Roon; Bergwijn, Depay, Babel

We say: Germany 1-1 Netherlands

The man-for-man quality in these two sides is perhaps closer than it has been for a number of years, and as such we cannot separate the two sides. Germany appear to have rediscovered their form after a nightmare year or so, but Netherlands know that defeat in Hamburg would leave them with a mountain to climb.

Written by
Barney Corkhill

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