Mustafi and Durm

Everything was prepared. A holiday on the sunny island of Ibiza had been booked and the opportunity to sit back and relax beckoned. For Shkodran Mustafi, there was little surprise about being dropped from the squad after the training camp in South Tyrol. After all, competition for places in Germany's center of defense is high. But then Marco Reus suffered an injury in the friendly against Armenia and the day afterwards, Mustafi's phone rang.

"I was on the way home from the garage and had started to prepare things for my holiday," said Mustafi at a press conference in Santo André. "Then I got the call from the manager. I was really surprised if I'm honest. Things had to move quickly, I didn't really have time to think. I had to get to the team's base and then it just all started."

The decision to cancel the holiday in Ibiza was an easy one. The chance to play at a World Cup certainly doesn't happen every day. His phone "exploded" with texts and Mustafi tried to answer all of them. At some point though, he surrendered and started his journey to Brazil.

Shkodran Mustafi

In many respects, Mustafi is a different kind of international player. When he was called up by Joachim Löw in March, his name remained a mystery to many in the footballing world. The 22-year-old had skirted under the radar for almost of his career. Until now.

Born to Albanian parents, Mustafi grew up in Bad Hersfeld in Hessen. After playing for Hamburger SV's youth, he moved to England to join Everton at the age of 17. Thanks to the nature of the English game, the defender developed a robust style at the club before making his next move in 2012 by joining Sampdoria - a side with whom he earned promotion to the Serie A. "I've become a bit of a fan favorite in Italy," said Mustafi while still in the training camp in South Tyrol. "In Germany, I'm Mr. Unknown."

Erik Durm

The same could be said for his defensive colleague Erik Durm. Ever since Dortmund coach Jürgen Klopp moved Durm into the first team, things have just accelerated for Durm. In no time at all, Durm won the trust of his manager at left back to such a great extent that Klopp hailed him as being "born for the Champions League" after making his debut in Europe's top footballing competition. Löw has long had Durm in his sights and called him up in May. "The team have been really welcoming, and that was really important for me," said Durm, who next to the broad Mustafi looks even thinner.

"I don't think I'm one of the slower players," said Durm with a wink. Alongside his pace, Durm also boasts impressive stamina, regularly clocking up double-figures worth of kilometers. He loves to stick to the line because he likes to go the distance to help create the play, while helping to secure the midfield. As good as it sounds, his one problem is at the moment, it's a defensive profile that doesn't fit into Löws plans. "At this tournament, you don't need attacking wingbacks like you would in qualifying," said Löw in his most recent press conference, hinting that he will play four central defenders against Portugal.

Durm appears to have the one inclination that Löw, at the moment, doesn't want: "I was a striker for 15 years and so the pull to roam forward is still there," revealed the Dortmund defender, who ousted club teammate and friend Marcel Schmelzer from the Germany squad. "Every attacking bit of play is fun. It's not easy to just stop being a striker, but that isn't a desirable trait in my position." It's for that reason the cards might not fall in his favor. Taking the climate into consideration, Löw has opted for a new type of safety - a compact defense.

The climate is their chance

Philipp Lahm's move into defensive midfield has unbalanced the defense enough. Löw will be cautious about making any further experiments. In the center of the back four, Per Mertesacker and Mats Hummels are top fit and the favored pairing. Mustafi will find it hard to get any game time. Despite his attacking notions, Durm's chances of featuring are greater. He's Jerome Boateng's back-up, considering the Bayern defender can move into the center if needed.

"Whether we play or not is secondary. This is about the team and success," said Durm, having seemingly internalized the communication guidelines. "If we can contribute to success that would be fantastic. But we're taking all that we can from the situation and are just happy to be a part of it."

Even if a starting spot is beyond the young duo, they're unlikely to just take up space on the bench. The group stage in northern Brazil will cost a lot of energy and Löw will need to call on the special power on his bench at some point. Mustafi and Durm, both with only one Germany appearance to their name, are entitled to be more than silent members of the squad. Should Durm's pace or Mustafi's strength come to the fore at the tournament, they'll be ready.