If Fifa's world rankings really counted then Germany might be the favourites for the World Cup, with Spain gone they are the top ranked surviving side. Instead, a poor first half against Algeria has ensured that they are not even firmly fancied to beat a French side this afternoon that languishes far below them on the list.

Paul Pogba, indeed, seemed genuinely perplexed when asked on Monday whether he and his team mates feared Joachim Löw’s side.

So poor were the Germans through the early stages of their second round match that just about everybody back home has had enough with their coach’s grand defensive experiment. In a rare display of unity, the press and pundits are generally agreed that Philipp Lahm should revert to right back in a more orthodox looking defence.

Earlier this week, Löw sounded like a man who had invested too much in a pet project to turn back now as he insists that the change would be a “worst case scenario”. Somebody may have since raised the alternative, boarding a flight to Frankfurt tomorrow because the coach was more circumspect yesterday, saying that “no decision is forever,” and that they would take stock “before and during the game”.

Home critics

He said at one point that Manuel Neuer, who did more defending last time out than one or two of his back four, would be capable of playing in midfield if asked and after his performance the other night, a fair few of the critics back home would probably settle for that. Löw, though, when push comes to shove, seems likely to stick to his guns . . . for now.

“I’ve had this sort of situation before,” he said yesterday, “this pressure for change from the public, but we have won three games and drawn one and even if we haven’t always played particularly well so far, I think we can do better.”

Löw’s other concern is the mild bout of flu that has affected seven of his squad but he says that even the most seriously affected player, Mats Hummels, was able to train yesterday and all are available to start with the central defender amongst those set to do so.

His opposite number, meanwhile, has equally important calls to make and Didier Deschamps seems no more certain to bow to pressure from the critics; the only difference being that the French, having travelled with low expectations, have fewer of them just now.

Deschamps was in upbeat form at yesterday’s pre-match press conference during which he cited without hesitation November 19th last year as the day when the fortunes of this French team turned around. That was the date of the second play-off game against Ukraine, a match his side won 3-0 with a side substantially different looking team to the one that had been badly beaten in Kiev.

Some of the changes were enforced but, having both started the first game on the bench Mamadou Sakho and Karim Benzema came in for the second and scored the team’s three goals between them. Patrice Evra replaced Eric Abidal and Mathieu Valbuena took Samir Nasri’s place. The team’s performance was transformed and France’s place in Brazil booked.

Run of form

More than seven months on and with Franck Ribery, who started both play-off games, unavailable the only question to seriously linger is whether Olivieir Giroud starts. If he does then Benzema at this stage switches to the left, if not then Antoine Griezmann starts there.

The two frontmen’s club records this season are remarkably similar for France, Benzema is the man in the more sustained run of form and most of the other available evidence points to the latter combination being the more positive option.

That said, the Arsenal striker against the Swiss and that didn’t go so badly and Deschamps likes Giroud. Despite the dramatic improvement that the team showed against Nigeria after he had departed, the coach defended the striker’s contribution. In truth, France looked disjointed around their opponents’ area until Griezmann arrived midway through the second half.

Against a German side built on shaky foundations, it is not an area in which the French can afford to handicap themselves but Deschamps is defiant. “”Nobody’s afraid,” he says. “The German team is strong, with a lot experience, especially of quarter and semi-finals but nobody’s afraid; it’s a pleasure and we are preparing well.”

Historically, the French actually have a slight edge over with their neighbours with more wins and a convincingly better record in their more recent meetings but the Germans lead two to one at the World Cup. “We’re not concerned worried about that history,” insists Deschamps, “we want to write come of our own.”