Germany coach Joachim Loew admits he made mistakes in the 2-1 loss to Italy in the Euro 2012 semi-finals.
A brace from Mario Balotelli was enough for Italy despite Mesut Oezil pulling a goal back for Germany from the penalty spot late on in Warsaw.
Loew also took some blame for the spectacular collapse of Germany in the 4-4 draw against Sweden in a UEFA World Cup qualifier, in which his men threw away a four-goal lead.
“With the knowledge I have today, I would probably approach the Italy game differently,” Loew told Suddeutsche Zeitung.
“I had a clear plan for that game and of course I have to now admit that the plan did not work.
“Against Sweden, I got (Mario) Goetze and (Lukas) Podolski to drop deeper to try give us more security and that did not work.
“The year 2012 was constructive for all of us and I have certainly learned from it.”
Loew’s contract with Germany expires in 2014, and the 52-year-old recently said he would be happy to extend his deal, amid rumours he could replace Jose Mourinho at Real Madrid.
Roy Hodgson has announced that he believes England will struggle over the next two years, as it appears Germany have this year. And he would like to make it clear that when England set a world record for competitive wins, reach the semis of a major tournament, and end up ranked No 2 to what is genuinely regarded as one of the best international teams of all time, he too is fully prepared to take the blame for those ‘struggles’.