Germany’s Loew puts young guns on ice

Germany coach Joachim Loew has resisted the temptation to call up shooting stars Andre Schuerrle and Lewis Holtby for the Euro 2012 qualifiers against Turkey and Kazakhstan.

With seven goals between them in seven games for shock new Bundesliga leaders Mainz, Loew has already said Schuerrle, 19, and Holtby, 20, will play for Germany by the end of the year, probably in November’s friendly with Sweden.

But the pair will sit out this month’s matches against Turkey in Berlin on October 8 and Kazakhstan in Astana on October 12 and will play for Germany’s under-21 side instead.

Both Schuerrle and Holtby scored in Mainz’s 4-2 Bundesliga win over Hoffenheim on Saturday to give their side their seventh straight German league victory.

Loew singled out Holtby for special praise after his defence-splitting pass set up the opening goal.

“His pass was worth the entrance fee alone,” said the impressed national coach.

Of the young talent ear-marked by Loew, only Borussia Dortmund’s Kevin Grosskreutz, 22, has been selected for the senior Germany side for the qualifiers as he looks set to be groomed as a replacement for Lukas Podolski.

“Basically, in the last few weeks several young players have come into focus with excellent league performances,” said Loew.

“After talking with (Germany Under-21 coach) Rainer Adrion, we decided that in the course of rebuilding the under-21 side, those players should get as much game time as possible.

“The exception is Grosskreutz, because he is no longer eligible for the under-21 side.

“Due to his good performances in recent months, he has earned the chance to impress with the senior side, so we can find out a bit more about him.”

With captain Michael Ballack picking up a knee injury, Bayern Munich’s Philipp Lahm will skipper the side that have won two games from two in Group A.

Loew has stuck with most of the players that served him well at the World Cup, where Germany finished third, with Manchester City full-back Jerome Boateng back in the squad after a knee injury.

Werder Bremen’s Per Mertesacker has also been called up despite fracturing his eye socket in the 6-1 win over Azerbaijan in last month’s qualifier.

With only three strikers selected in Bayern Munich pair Mario Gomez and Miroslav Klose, plus Stuttgart’s Brazil-born Cacau, Loew looks set to continue playing with a lone centre-forward and attacking wingers.

Squad

Goalkeepers: Rene Adler (Bayer Leverkusen), Manuel Neuer (Schalke 04), Tim Wiese (Werder Bremen)

Defenders: Holger Badstuber (Bayern Munich), Jerome Boateng (Manchester City/ENG), Marcell Jansen (Hamburg), Philipp Lahm (Bayern Munich), Per Mertesacker (Werder Bremen), Sascha Riether (VfL Wolfsburg), Heiko Westermann (Hamburg)

Midfielders: Kevin Grosskreutz (Borussia Dortmund), Sami Khedira (Real Madrid/ESP), Toni Kroos (Bayern Munich), Marko Marin (Werder Bremen), Thomas Mueller (Bayern Munich), Mesut Ozil (Real Madrid/ESP), Lukas Podolski (Cologne), Bastian Schweinsteiger (Bayern Munich), Christian Traesch (VfB Stuttgart)

Forwards: Cacau (VfB Stuttgart), Mario Gomez, Miroslav Klose (both Bayern Munich)