Germany coach Rudi Voeller has made it clear that the focus will be on the defence after nervous displays in that area by the three-times world and European champions in the build-up to the tournament.
Voeller was expected to opt for a tight 4-5-1 formation with only one striker in Kevin Kuranyi.
With more talent in their squad, especially in attack, and the perfect man to exploit Germany's defensive woes in Ruud van Nistelrooy, the Dutch will start favourites in the game in Porto.
However, coach Dick Advocaat's men have a reputation for under-achieving at major events and have been nearly as worrying as the Germans in recent outings.
Much will depend on which Dutch side turn up. A collection of brilliant individuals with no game plan might struggle but if they play as a team, they should win.
The ultimate tournament specialists, Germany need a combative performance and a faultless show from central defenders Christian Woerns and Jens Nowotny.
"If we believe in ourselves, we will be hard to beat," said Voeller, hoping for a repeat of Germany's surprise run to the 2002 World Cup final.
Advocaat said Germany's recent problems would lose relevance once serious business starts.
"They are a big footballing country, yet they are always trying to portray themselves as the underdogs," he said.
Probable teams:
Germany: (4-5-1): 1-Oliver Kahn; 3-Arne Friedrich, 4-Christian Woerns, 5-Jens Nowotny, 21-Philipp Lahm; 19-Bernd Schneider, 6-Frank Baumann, 8-Dietmar Hamann, 13-Michael Ballack, 22-Torsten Frings; 10-Kevin Kuranyi.
Netherlands (4-3-3): 1-Edwin van der Sar; 2-Michael Reiziger, 4-Wilfred Bouma, 3-Jaap Stam, 5-Giovanni van Bronckhorst; 8-Edgar Davids, 6-Philip Cocu, 14-Wesley Sneijder; 7-Andy van der Meyde; 11-Rafael van der Vaart, 10-Ruud van Nistelrooy.
Referee: Anders Frisk (Sweden)
Linesmen: Kenneth Petersson (Sweden), Peter Ekstrom (Sweden)
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