"World-class Marco Reus will be the player of the tournament" - Cacau
Former Nuremberg, VfB Stuttgart and Germany striker Cacau has tipped Borussia Dortmund Marco Reus to win the adidas Golden Ball award for best player of the tournament at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
Borussia Dortmund forward Reus is set to make his World Cup debut after injury denied him his place at the 2014 World Cup, which Germany won, and UEFA Euro 2016.
"I'm delighted that Marco Reus will finally get to play at a World Cup, and I hope he'll stay fit," Cacau, who played for Germany in South Africa in 2010, told t-online.de. "For me he's one of the best players in the world: a great dribbler, extremely quick and exceptionally good in front of goal. Reus will be the player of the tournament."
Germany are bidding to become the first team since Brazil in 1962 to lift back-to-back World Cups.
"Brazil have improved, France have improved, Spain have improved - Argentina, too," warned head coach Joachim Löw, after Germany arrived in Moscow on Tuesday. "As the defending champions, the opposition are going to put in super-human efforts to try and beat us. It's going to take a massive effort from us to counter that."
Germany begin their World Cup defence in Group F against Mexico at the Luzhniki Stadium on 17 June. Löw's charges also face Sweden in Krasnodar (23 June), before taking on South Korea in Kazan (27 June).
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