Oliver Bierhoff, manager of the German national team

A sure thing. Oliver Bierhoff, today’s manager of the German national team, was scheduled for Thursday’s press conference – and there was little doubt that the media would ask the 38-year old former goalgetter about that one game in 1996. On Saturday (8.45 P.M., live on ARD), Germany faces the Czech Republic in a battle for first place. Both teams are deadlocked with ten points each at the top of EURO 2008 qualifying Group D. Saturdays’s winner will have made giant strides towards Austria/Switzerland 2008.

More than ten years ago, on June 30, 1996, Bierhoff wrote football history. The Czechs led Germany in the final of the European Championship. Bierhoff was substituted and scored twice, including his "Golden Goal" five minutes into extra-time. Germany won their third European Championship. And Bierhoff continued a successful career, both in the Italian Serie A and in the "Mannschaft" (70 caps, 37 goals). But the successful manager is not one for reminiscing: "It’s true, I do have a very special relation to games against the Czech Republic. But we should not look back. We should focus on this Saturday."

So far, both teams have played a great qualifying round, accumulating ten points in four games. Germany enjoy the lead in the group standings because of their goal-differential. Bierhoff hopes his team stays in the lead. "We want to prove that we are the strongest team in our group. We believe that we’ll face our toughest opponent, but we will travel to Prague with a lot of confidence."

Torsten Frings

Torsten Frings feels the same way. The defensive midfielder plays a solid season for Werder Bremen. Germany’s football magazine kicker ranks Frings third highest among all active Bundesliga players, with an average grade of 2.74. "We are not afraid of them, we do respect them", Frings said about Saturday’s opponent. "And they respect us, I’m sure. We have a strong team, and we really look forward to this one."

Frings claims to feel this enthusiasm in every single practice session. For a change of pace, players participated in a yoga lesson on Thursday. Joachim Löw also has his players spend hours in front of the TV set, watching DVD highlights of the Czech Republic.

Frings (65 caps), meanwhile, has grown into the second leader on the team, right next to FC Chelsea’s Michael Ballack. "The World Cup really gave me a boost. And I have played for Germany for a while now. I should carry my share of the responsibility, and I feel ready for that role."