Germany coach Joachim Loew has said his defence will need to keep a close watch on Bayern Munich's France midfielder Franck Ribery during Wednesday's friendly international in Bremen.
Ribery produced a superb individual display for Bayern on Sunday, scoring both goals in their 2-0 win over Schalke 04 which left them second in the German league.
The 28-year-old is recapturing his form and he is set to spearhead the French attack at Bremen's Weserstadion.
"He's already played well in a huge amount of matches in Germany," said Loew.
"He can dominate the one-on-one situations almost to perfection.
"It wasn't just against Schalke that he was strong, agile and threatening in front of goal.
"Ribery has been one of the key players at Bayern for years."
Bayer Leverkusen's Lars Bender has said the German midfield can ill afford to allow Ribery space to attack.
"We all know about Franck Ribery and we know he can decide games by himself," said Bender, whose twin Sven is out injured.
"He's one of their best players and we will have to be very careful with him if he gives one of his best performances."
Both teams are missing key players and France are without attackers Loic Remy of Marseille and Real Madrid's Karim Benzema.
France coach Laurent Blanc has called up 26-year-old Marseille midfielder Morgan Amalfitano and Tottenham Hotspur's striker Louis Saha.
Germany are missing five first-choice players.
Midfielders Bastian Schweinsteiger, Lukas Podolski and Mario Goetze, plus defender Per Mertesacker have been out for a few weeks, while Loew lost captain Philipp Lahm on Sunday.
Dortmund midfielder Sven Bender has dropped out after being kicked in the face in a league game and because of Lahm's knee infection, striker Miroslav Klose is likely to captain the side, providing he recovers from a sore back.
Wednesday's match is the last opportunity for Loew to look at his options ahead of June's Euro 2012 and he will name his final 23-man squad at the start of May.
Germany have been drawn against Denmark, Portugal and the Netherlands, while France are in Group D with England, the Ukraine and Sweden.
Source: AFP
