Huth wants Germany call up
Stoke City defender Robert Huth says he is hoping he can play well and earn a call up to the Germany squad ahead of the European 2012 qualification campaign.
Huth is a very no-nonsense defender who wears his heart on his sleeve. These stereotypical qualities that German defenders possess and it will be difficult for him to make an impression at international level because of how successful the Germany side were at the World Cup.
Huth made 32 appearances for Stoke last season and scored three goals in the process. These are impressive statistics for a defender who cannot even make the fringes of the Germany squad at present.
Huth will have to get noticed one way or another and there are different ways that he can go about this. However, the quality of the Germany team is very high and there are already a few names ahead of him in the pecking order.
Ways to get noticed
The simplest way for Huth to get noticed is to stay fit and stay in the Stoke team. A national coach is never going to look at players who are not playing every single week and Huth has to make one of the central defence positions at Stoke his own.
He has to be consistent in both areas of the pitch. He has to stay strong and well organised in defence and still pose a threat when he's going forward. Defenders at international level are required to do more than just defend and Huth is very good attacking the ball with his head.
He seems to have the art nailed of using the media to leak positive comments. A lot of players do this for both good and bad reasons, Huth has to continue this and cash in on interviews when he is playing well.
He said: "It's something that I would like to do but I know it's going to be difficult. I have to see in the future how I perform for Stoke and hopefully I can get back into the squad. It doesn't seem that bad when you lose to the eventual winners."
The pecking order
There is a very long pecking order at the moment around the Germany side. Although Huth was named in an initial 30-man squad to play at the World Cup last January the likes of Per Mertesacker are far ahead of Huth in terms of being regularly picked.
Huth will have to grab any chance he gets with both hands. This will mean playing well even in a meaningless friendly against a very weak opponent. The only way he will climb the pecking order is to do well on the pitch in front of the people that matter.
He added: "The best team won the tournament in the end, but it was a good run for Germany. [Pre-season] It's gone really smoothly. We've been away for a week or so [in Austria] and it's nice to get the games going."
Betting advice
Huth makes Stoke City a much stronger defensive unit. When he is in the side they make fewer mistakes, which means they have a better chance of winning more games. He is a leader and one of the club's most important current players.
Take advantage of his height and power. When Stoke are playing a smaller team and he is in the starting 11 then have a punt on him to score. He can do this from a corner or a Rory Delap long throw and you will get brilliant odds on him because he's a defender.
Tags: