Andrea Pirlo aware of German threat

Andrea Pirlo has said that he believes that Germany will prove more of a threat than England as Joachim Low's men will attack and push higher up the pitch.

Pirlo played a key role in Italy's quarter-final victory over England and he has said that his team will play no differently but that Germany will not sit back like England did.

Pirlo said: "Our approach to the game against Germany will be the same as against England.

"This is the only way we can play. But unlike England, Germany can create many threats to our defence."

Pirlo also singled out Mesut Ozil as a key threat to his own game, saying: "I expect Ozil to be a great threat in and around the areas where I am playing, even though he will not necessarily do a man-marking job on me."

The Juventus man scored his penalty against England in last Sunday's shootout with a cheeky chip.