Just who is Loachim Jogi' Loew? For starters, he is arguably the least renowned coach at Euro 2008. He is also the most stylish, to the extent that all requests regarding his designers of choice are now wearily dismissed.

Just who is Loachim Jogi' Loew? For starters, he is arguably the least renowned coach at Euro 2008. He is also the most stylish, to the extent that all requests regarding his designers of choice are now wearily dismissed.

Having contemplated an unedifying resignation after the 2-1 group defeat to Croatia, Loew is now being talked about as imminent Bundesliga management material. It is a remarkable reversal of fortune for the former midfielder of modest achievement who has emerged from the shadow of Jurgen Klinsmann.

Loew's career as a travelling tradesman has brought him unexpectedly to the forefront of the German national team he could not get near as a player. This is no mere patsy to the prodigious egos of Jens Lehmann, Michael Ballack and Co but a trusted and revered technician who is bearing the fruits of a long and arduous labour.

As a player, Loew was a ham-and-egger who regularly defaulted to his local team, Freiburg, after undistinguished travels to VfB Stuttgart (four appearances), Eintracht Frankfurt (24 appearances) and Karlsruher (24 appearances). He wound down in the tranquility of this year's co-host country, playing for the unfashionable FC Schaffhausen and FC Winterthur in Switzerland.

It quickly became apparent that Loew would enjoy greater prominence as a coach, not that it would have been difficult to overshadow his playing career. He returned to VfB as assistant to Rolf Fringer and was elevated first as caretaker and then manager when Fringer left to become manager of the Swiss national team.

Blessed with the magic triangle' of Krassimir Balakov, Giovane Elber and Fredi Bobic, Loew won the German Cup and lost to Chelsea in the European Cup-winners' Cup final, while finishing fourth in the Bundesliga.

He spent a floundering year in Turkey with Fenerbahce and dropped to the fag-end of Bundesliga II in a forlorn attempt to spare Karlsruher SC from plunging into the third tier of German football. Misery followed him to Turkey a second time, with Adanaspor. It was amid the Alpine splendour that he was again rejuvenated, this time winning the Austrian championship with FC Tirol in 2002 only for the club to be declared bankrupt and liquidated. Then a stint at Aurtria Vienna was interrupted by an unexpected call from Klinsmann.

Having met at a coaching school, Klinsmann sought Loew's tactical knowledge and communication skills to revive an ailing German national team. It worked a treat, with Klinsmann the public face of the new approach and Loew operating diligently behind the scenes, implementing fresh ideas in sports science and fitness. "He has always been much more than an assistant coach to me," said Klinsmann after taking Germany, unexpectedly, to the semi-final of World Cup 2006. The DFB endorsed his promotion when Klinsmann declined to renew his contract and Loew has never looked back.

With his flop of dark hair, fitted Hugo Boss shirt with sleeves rolled to three-quarter length, and slim physique he has been likened to Hugh Grant with personality. Regular updates on his wardrobe are demanded by the fashion departments of the German media until his patience finally snapped. "It's getting annoying now, frankly," he snapped. "You talk about it all the time and it is just not important."

An unsuspecting role model, he has fallen foul of the opposition political party in Germany, the SPD, for the heinous crime of sneaking a quick puff to calm his nerves before the quarter-final against Portugal, for which he was banned from the dug-out after a disagreement with Josef Hickersberger, the Austria manager, in the previous match. "I am only human," he said afterwards, "but if we win Euro 2008 I will give up for the rest of the year."

He will return to the technical area this evening for a feisty semi-final against a depleted Turkey.

The majesty of Ballack, the Germany captain, should halt his nicotine cravings and yesterday the midfielder expressed his hope for a change in fortune.

His predictions for Euro 2008 - Italy, France, Portugal and Croatia - have all since departed. Ballack's two previous semi-finals with Germany have also been forgettable occasions. He scored the winner against South Korea in 2002 only to miss the final through suspension. Four years later, he was left disconsolate when Italy scored twice in a dramatic end to extra time in Ballack's home World Cup in Germany.

"At the time 2006, I think the team was still short of a little something," said Ballack. "This time we hope we have what it takes to beat Turkey. Whoever you face at this stage you're going to get an even match. We know Turkey are missing a lot of players through injury and suspension but they have shown a never-say-die attitude.

"Their mental strength is a major factor, they can adapt to any opponent and they have a great motivator as a coach."

The same can be said of Germany under the learned Loew.