Low set to start Ozil, Gotze

Germany coach Joachim Low has hinted that the highly-rated pair of Mario Gotze and Mesut Ozil will start together when Germany face the Ukraine on Friday. Low has previously struggled to find room for the talented midfielders in his 4-2-3-1 system, but he is pondering an experiment with two central midfielders in Kiev and Gotze and Ozil could therefore be given the opportunity to prove they can cohabit. "The tendency is towards them both playing," revealed the Germany coach at a press conference in Hamburg today. "I will just wait and see our final training session on Thursday and then I will decide who will actually start." Low is without the injured pair of Marco Reus and Miroslav Klose and their absences have thrown a spanner in the works. The Germany coach was hoping to get a closer look at Reus, who only recently made his senior national team debut, while the Lazio striker was set to partner Mario Gomez in a two-man attack. "I had planned on Klose and Reus being available," he admitted. "The plan was for them to both start, but now they will join the squad on Saturday." Low will instead try out another variant. "We can afford to make experiments," said Low, whose side came through UEFA EURO 2012 qualification with a perfect record of ten wins out of ten. "We have a generation of young players who are already very advanced in their development. These players are ambitious, but composed at the same time." Meanwhile, Hannover goalkeeper Ron-Robert Zieler will make his debut in goal as Manuel Neuer is given a break. Neuer will join the squad on Saturday for their friendly against the Netherlands next Tuesday, although his Bayern Munich team-mate and national team captain Philipp Lahm will not play a part in either game as he is given a break by Low. Ozil, Gotze, Per Mertesacker and Sami Khedira can also expect breaks over the next week. "The players who are involved in the DFB-Pokal or the Champions League will not play for 90 minutes in both matches," said Low.