Germany: Klinsmann’s goal is a fourth World Cup title

Since 1954, the German national team has reached a World Cup or European Championship final on 13 occasions. The representatives of the German Football Association, DFB, have won three World Cup and three European titles, making them the most successful in Europe.

Thus, the expectations for the team at the 2006 FIFA World Cup on home soil are high. Polls among German citizens as to who will receive the World Cup trophy of the International Football Association, FIFA, on July 9, 2006, show that the majority believe Germany can win. National coach Juergen Klinsmann, who took over the team in August 2004, has contributed greatly to this optimism. At his inauguration, Klinsmann said he wanted to fulfil the wishes of German football fans and lead their team to a fourth World Cup triumph, to add to those in 1954, 1974 and 1990.

Here you can find information about the star of the team ...

These hopes were nourished at the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup. One year after a disappointing elimination in the first round of the UEFA European Championship in Portugal, the team, rejuvenated by Klinsmann, showed a marked improvement. Wins over Australia (4-3), Tunisia (3-0) and a draw against Argentina (2-2) led them into the semi-finals, where the DFB team lost 3-2 in a spectacular encounter with record winning World Cup champions Brazil. And in the match for third place, Mexico, who had defeated Brazil 1-0, was beaten 4-3 after extra time.

The results clearly show that the German side has been transformed under the direction of the former world-class attacker Klinsmann. The German national squad was traditionally famous for its uncompromising defence. But under World Cup and European champion Klinsmann, priority for the German players, often called the “young wilds”, has switched to attack. Klinsmann achieved an impressive record in his first season: 10 victories, four draws and two defeats (by South Korea and Brazil) and a goal aggregate of 42-22.

The defence, however, is now considered the weakest area, a problem Klinsmann intends to remedy before the World Cup kick-off on June 9. The national coach, who earned the DFB’s highest coaching licence a few years ago, tested 35 players, among them 11 debutants, by the autumn of 2005. The third defeat under his leadership, against Slovakia (2-0) in Bratislava on September 3, 2005, saw his team fail to score a single goal for the first time. But just four days later against South Africa in Bremen, the team rediscovered the verve shown in the FIFA Confederations Cup and won 4-2. The most important task is to counter the right balance between offence and defence before the World Cup opening match in Munich, with Germany seeded as hosts.

Klinsmann has introduced many new ideas in training, extensively changed the coaching staff, and contracted a psychologist and a team of fitness experts from his chosen residential country, the USA. He also made the unusual decision to use the two goalkeepers, Oliver Kahn and Jens Lehmann, not only alternately, but also to nominate just one of them for the international matches. Klinsmann, who won 108 international caps, stresses his confidence in grooming younger players. In September 2005, he gave two 19-year-olds, Lukas Sinkiewicz and Marcell Jansen, the opportunity to prove themselves in defence. Klinsmann sent the youngest German team ever on to the pitch.

Surprisingly, the national coach has already named his preliminary selection of 28 players for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. The following players have been nominated:

Goal: Oliver Kahn (Bayern Munich), Jens Lehmann (Arsenal FC), Timo Hildebrand (VfB Stuttgart)

Defence: Arne Friedrich (Hertha BSC Berlin), Robert Huth (Chelsea FC), Marcell Jansen (Borussia Moenchengladbach), Per Mertesacker (Hannover 96), Patrick Owomoyela (Werder Bremen), Lukas Sinkiewicz (1. FC Köln/Cologne), Christoph Metzelder, Christian Woerns (both Borussia Dortmund), Andreas Hinkel (VfB Stuttgart), Philipp Lahm (Bayern Munich)

Midfield: Michael Ballack, Sebastian Deisler, Bastian Schweinsteiger (all Bayern Munich), Tim Borowski, Torsten Frings (both Werder Bremen), Fabian Ernst (Schalke 04), Thomas Hitzlsperger (VfB Stuttgart), Bernd Schneider (Bayer Leverkusen), Sebastian Kehl (Borussia Dortmund)

Attack: Kevin Kuranyi (Schalke 04), Miroslav Klose (Werder Bremen), Lukas Podolski (1. FC Köln/Cologne), Oliver Neuville (Borussia Moenchengladbach), Gerald Asamoah (Schalke 04), Mike Hanke (VfL Wolfsburg)

"FIFA WM" / "The World Cup Winners" - Germany

Here you can find more information about the star of the team from Germany...

Here you can find more information about the trainer of the team from Germany...