Former Albion favourite Darren Moore has his say on the perils facing England in the last 16 with a World Cup showdown with Germany looming on the horizon.

Meeting Germany rather than Ghana in the last 16 of the World Cup could be a real blessing in disguise for England.

After watching the two teams battle it out on Wednesday evening, I really do not think there was much to choose between them.

Germany might have won the game thanks to a fantastic goal from Mesut Ozil, but it was Ghana who really impressed me.

Even without their best player Michael Essien, they are a very dangerous team, by far the best from Africa. Their pace and power had the potential to cause England serious problems.

No, England are far better suited to playing Germany. Of course, we must respect them, but by no means should we fear them. In fact, they are the ones who should be fearing us because we have more world-class players than them.

For all the bravado from Franz Beckenbauer, privately they will be gutted they are playing us and not the United States, no doubt about it.

If we play to our potential I can only see one winner, as this is not the Germany we are used to seeing.

For once, they are lacking a bit of experience – something we have in abundance with the likes of Frank Lampard, John Terry, Steven Gerrard and David James in the side.

Historically, the Germans have a great mentality in these games but I’m confident that little extra experience will see us over the line.

It’s so crucial when the stakes are as high as they are in a World Cup game – often the difference between winning and losing. Clearly, it is something Fabio Capello values very highly.

The England boss has picked the most experienced squad possible by bringing in the likes of Jamie Carragher and Ledley King. Paul Scholes would have been on the plane too, if he’d had his way.

The average age of Italy’s squad when they won the World Cup four years ago was 29 and that tells you something.  Perhaps it is an omen that this England squad’s average age is the same.

It is way too early to be even suggesting they are potential World Cup winners, but at least they are certainly going in the direction.

Slovenia was a massive improvement from the Algeria game from the boys and everyone one of them played there part. The only disappointment was that they did not score more goals, which ended up costing us top spot in the group.

While I’m glad we are playing Germany and not Ghana, it does mean a tougher potential run to the final with Argentina, Spain and Brazil looking our likely opponents. If we are going to win it, we’ll certainly do it the hard way!

Capello now has to make the difficult decision over whether to change a winning team.

But because that team got the right result against Slovenia doesn’t mean it’s the right team to get a result against Germany.

It would be harsh to leave anyone out, but it is a team game and whoever wears that jersey on Sunday is doing it not for themselves but the whole country. Capello could bring back Aaron Lennon with his pace and threat, although James Milner would count himself unfortunate if he was left out.

Also, it would not surprise me to see Ledley King, a player I rate among the best in the Premier League, back in as soon as he is fit, even though Matthew Upson played ever so well.

And don’t be too disheartened by Wayne Rooney’s struggles so far. The key thing for me is he’s getting chances.  A couple of times he was unfortunate and the keeper made good saves. As long as the chances keep coming, we know he’ll score more than he misses.

Rooney’s not been himself since hurting his ankle but even at him at 50 to 75 per cent fit is still a menace for any defender.

Trust me, I’ve played against him!