The German national team also won their second match in the EC qualification. On Wednesday Rudi Voeller's charges finally scraped home with a 2-1 success in Group Five against the Faroe Islands.
Miroslav Klose finally saved the Germans by netting the
winner to end a personal drought of 629 minutes in the national
shirt stretching back to the first phase of the World Cup - where
he headed home five times in three matches.
Klose struck in the 59th minute after early German pressure had
brought a planned early breakthough from the penalty spot before a
not so planned own-goal gave the part-timers from Scandinavia hope.
And Voller admitted his side didn't deserve much more as the
Faroes generally gave as good as they got. "It was a tough game and we knew it would be. It was a question of going out and getting three points. They didn"t have many chances but they were very compact. And we fluffed most of our own chances," Voller told German television.
Michael Ballack, recovered from a debilitating bout of flu, had
forecast that once the first goal arrived the Germans would stroll
their way through. In fact, the reverse was the case as he took all of two minutes to put the hosts ahead from the penalty spot after Oli Johannesen bundled over striker Carsten Jancker in the box.
But although the Germans, also boosted by the return after ankle
trouble of Liverpool midfielder Dietmar Hamann, played keep ball
thereafter they struggled to find their rhythm in the stadium where they had thrashed Spain 4-1 two years ago in Voller's first match in charge.
Torsten Frings and Carsten Jancker went close around the quarter-hour mark before Christian Worns volleyed wide and Klose then shot across goal from the edge of the box.
Such profligacy was punished in first-half injury-time when Arne
Friedrich headed a high ball into his own net to cheer Henrik
Larsen's side.
More information on the national team and the EURO 2004 can be found here.
[ko]
[bild1]The German national team also won their second match in the EC qualification. On Wednesday Rudi Voeller's charges finally scraped home with a 2-1 success in Group Five against the Faroe Islands.
Miroslav Klose finally saved the Germans by netting the
winner to end a personal drought of 629 minutes in the national
shirt stretching back to the first phase of the World Cup - where
he headed home five times in three matches.
Klose struck in the 59th minute after early German pressure had
brought a planned early breakthough from the penalty spot before a
not so planned own-goal gave the part-timers from Scandinavia hope.
[bild2]And Voller admitted his side didn't deserve much more as the
Faroes generally gave as good as they got. "It was a tough game and we knew it would be. It was a question of going out and getting three points. They didn"t have many chances but they were very compact. And we fluffed most of our own chances," Voller told German television.
Michael Ballack, recovered from a debilitating bout of flu, had
forecast that once the first goal arrived the Germans would stroll
their way through. In fact, the reverse was the case as he took all of two minutes to put the hosts ahead from the penalty spot after Oli Johannesen bundled over striker Carsten Jancker in the box.
But although the Germans, also boosted by the return after ankle
trouble of Liverpool midfielder Dietmar Hamann, played keep ball
thereafter they struggled to find their rhythm in the stadium where they had thrashed Spain 4-1 two years ago in Voller's first match in charge.
Torsten Frings and Carsten Jancker went close around the quarter-hour mark before Christian Worns volleyed wide and Klose then shot across goal from the edge of the box.
Such profligacy was punished in first-half injury-time when Arne
Friedrich headed a high ball into his own net to cheer Henrik
Larsen's side.
More information on the national team and the EURO 2004 can be found here.
