Indeed, the Germans' own trip to Prague seven months ago is real cause for worry.

The outstanding performance of the entire qualifying series so far, such was the way they tore through the Czechs like waves through a sandcastle, the winning scoreline of just 21 seemed a gross injustice.

And with the Dutch and Portuguese plodding and France and Italy patchy, there's little argument . . . Ireland will next Saturday host Europe's finest team at present.

Such is the transformation that 30 May 2006 seems a lot longer than 16 months ago.

That night, on the eve of the World Cup, a hopelessly disjointed German side undeservedly came from two down to claim a 2-2 draw against Japan . . . a valueless performance that gave much credence to Uli Hoeness's rant: "I believe, like the rest of the country, that the national team is a catastrophe."

Few had faith that Jurgen Klinsmann's seemingly zany practices could reverse a decade of disaster which saw the worst, most talent-poor German side in memory and the disastrous first-round exits of Euros 2000 and 2004.

Reaching the final of the 2002 World Cup, however resiliently, merely seemed an aberration in tune with the freakish nature of that tournament.

And even though Klinsmann almost emulated that last summer with, as one newspaper put it, "a new Germany that helped create a new Germany", the feeling was that once the coach had fled and the euphoria had faded it would be back to the grind. It was only then however that the true extent of Germany's Arsene Wenger-like revolution was revealed. Not to mention who was largely behind it.

The official documentary of the national side's World Cup . . . Germany: A Summer's Fairytale . . . proves revelatory.

In its wealth of behind-thescenes footage, it is always an impassioned Klinsmann geeing up his players. His more measured and sober assistant Joachim Loew, however, is the one assuredly telling them what to do and how to do it. It is of course Loew that has taken the reins from Klinsmann and Loew that has taken the side to the next level.

Having met at a coaching course some years ago, on his appointment in 2004 Klinsmann immediately hired the former Stuttgart coach as his second in command . . . Loew's more astute tactical mind providing the perfect bedrock for Klinsmann's new attacking philosophy. But his influence went further . . . the impression in Germany is that while Klinsmann was the figurehead that had the gravitas to push many of the duo's radical plans through, it was mainly Loew that devised them, aiming for a model of football that looked to Wenger's Arsenal and Frank Rijkaard's Barcelona as templates. Among them were the overhaul of Germany's decades-old coaching staff and the introduction of fresh faces and fresh ideas from the US and a variety of different sports that modernised the national team's approach. Though laughs were heard from the German tabloids, they quickly turned to cheers as the effects were finally seen in Germany's attacking crescendo last June.

On his promotion however, Loew even improved on that, quickly imposing his own personality. Whereas Klinsmann's harum-scarum approach was played at such a pace in order to overwhelm opposition and cover the side's defensive shortcomings, Loew tightened the team's structure as well as introducing a more controlled and fluent approach in attack.

Aside from smoothly maintaining that World Cup backroom model, he managed this by changing the squad's attitude to that of a club rather than an international side.

This is seen both in training and the team's remarkable spirit. Like Chelsea under Jose Mourinho, Germany practice what continental coaches call 'automatisms' . . . rehearsed moves perfected to such a degree that they can be executed at lightning speed in a match . . . while the 4-4-2 system is now so refined it barely matters which players are missing.

Indeed, it's testament to Loew's man-management abilities that squad-members visibly lift their game and mood at international level, leaving unhappy club form behind in many cases.

Jens Lehmann, for all his problems at Arsenal, has announced that rather than retire after Euro 2008 as intended, he is looking to the next World Cup.

All these factors synchronised beautifully in Prague, a performance unparalleled in cohesion and tempo among Europe's international sides at present. More importantly, despite missing Michael Ballack and Thorsten Frings, the level of performance has been maintained since with victories over England and Romania in friendlies and Wales in qualification. Indeed a hallmark of Loew's Germany has been that, despite the recent indifferent form of World Cup stars such as Lukas Podolski, Bastien Schweinsteiger and Philippe Lahm, the team has thrived. Rather than a hastily assembled collection of individuals like most international teams, Germany resemble a team at ease and in tune with each other as less celebrated names like Kevin Kuranyi and Christian Pander seamlessly slot in.

Despite the current affection in Germany for the team, there is trepidation they have yet to pass a truly significant test. Ireland won't provide that but if Germany maintain their recent momentum, the fans looking for Staunton's head could well be looking for mercy.