Loew rests stars for friendly

Germany coach Joachim Loew has as anticipated rested the bulk of his World Cup stars for next week’s friendly against Denmark.

Loew’s 18-strong list announced yesterday included only eight of the 23 players he took to South Africa for the 2010 finals where Germany finished third.

World Cup players called up for this Euro 2012 qualifier warm-up included goalkeeper Manuel Neur and defender Jerome Boateng.

Loew appeased some of Germany’s top clubs by leaving out the likes of Philipp Lamm, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Thomas Muller, Miroslav Klose and Sami Khedira.

“It was obvious that we would overlook our most important players for this game”, Loew commented.

He added: “We are conscious of our responsibilities with regard to the international players. After a competition such as this it’s important for them to be able to focus on their clubs and to prepare for the new season.”

Missing also was Germany captain Michael Ballack.