June 9, 2006
A HOST OF PROBLEMS
World Cup host Germany, Klinsmann face long road in front of their own fans

The March 2 headline in Kicker said it all:

DESASTER!

Even in German, most English-speaking soccer fans know what that word meant.

DISASTER!

As in the embarrassing 4-1 debacle to Italy that transpired the previous night in Florence.

"Mamma mia we're bad!" the Germany's biggest-selling daily Bild said on its front page. "Only 99 days to the World Cup and our national team is playing worse than ever before. If we play like that at the World Cup we'll be obliterated."

With exactly 100 days to the kickoff of the World Cup, no one was expecting that result. And that from a country that has a work ethic in the international end of the sport that is second to none.

"We are all very disappointed," coach Juergen Klinsmann said. "It was a lesson for us above all in the first half. But it's over now and we cannot escape it. We have to face the criticism."

But Klinsmann didn't. He ran -- or better yet -- flew across the Atlantic to take refuge in his southern California home in Orange County. Adding fuel to the controversy was that Klinsmann conveniently missed a World Cup workshop for all 32 coaches in Dusseldorf several days after the game, taking refuge in the United States.

"It's incredible that he's not here," said German soccer great Franz Beckenbauer, the president of Germany's World Cup organizing committee. "As host country you have to be here. Nearly all the coaches are here. Carlos Alberto Parreira came from Brazil, Sven-Goran Eriksson came from England, but our head coach is not here.

"He should have been here. This is an obligatory meeting and he does not have all that many meetings that are obligatory.

"I don't want to say anything more about it because the more I think about it, the more drastic my choice of words will become."

They were drastic enough, considering Beckenbauer, a long-time backer of the coach, also criticized Klinsmann's performance as coach and the lack of progress made by the team.

"At the beginning it worked out very well and Klinsmann was able to change a few things but now there's not much left of all that," he said. "We are back where we were a few years ago and time is running out."

To which Klinsmann retorted in the Bild newspaper: "I was in Germany for three of the last five weeks after the Bundesliga started up after the winter break. I've got my plan with everything necessary for the World Cup preparations. I've seen matches almost every weekend this winter, but I'm not someone who puts himself in the forefront."

It has been more than just Klinsmann not being in Germany all the time, although he should get his share of the blame. It is about a generation of German players who are ordinary by the country's standards, especially when you compare the players to some of the legends of the past.

This is what it comes down to: This German team doesn't come close to measuring up to its past three world championship sides. There are no Fritz Walters (1954), Beckenbauers or Gerd Muellers (1974) and even no Lothar Matthaueses or Juergen Klinsmann (1990) around, at least not as influential players.

So, you can understand why the Germany reaction ranged from worry to panic. They have valid reasons. Italy is a good team, but the Italians shouldn't score four goals on the Germans anywhere, including the moon.

Trying to squeeze as much as he can out of his thin talent and a rather ordinary German side has been Klinsmann's challenge.

"I believe, like the rest of the country, that the national team is a catastrophe," former German international and current Bayern Munich general manager Uli Hoeness told www.BBC.com before the Florence flop.

Beyond fans and soccer officials, Klinsmann has found himself under intense scrutiny, including by politicians.

"It would be good if Herr Klinsmann would come before the sport committee and explain what his concept is and how Germany can win the World Cup," Norbert Barthle, a member of Chancellor Angela Merkel's CDU, told Reuters. "The match against Italy was gruesome and we wonder that can be fixed by the summer. The federal government is the biggest sponsor of the World Cup. In light of that, I'd like to get a few answers from him."

Added Reinhold Hemker, a deputy on the sport committee: "I'd like to hear from Juergen Klinsmann how he plans to create a secure foundation for the team. Klinsmann has good players but there are too many uncertainties. He should start saying clearly who he is counting on."

Complicating matters has been Klinsmann's choice of commuting from his Orange County home in southern California (he he married to an American wife) for training sessions and games. That meant Klinsmann has missed out on working with assistants on a daily basis and taking in weekend Bundesliga matches and visiting clubs of other German internationals.

"I still believe that it works perfectly," an unapologetic Klinsmann incredibly told reporters.

That controversial decision could bite Klinsmann in the butt bit time if Germany is eliminated early, say, in the second round. That would be devastating for a country that has become accustomed to going deep in the tournament and to the World Cup, which needs the host country to be around for a while to keep the domestic interest level at a high level.

Klinsmann eventually relented and said that he would be in Germany for a good portion of the time leading up to the Cup.

Against lightweights such as Costa Rica and Ecuador (Poland is the only true test), Germany should get through the first round without too much trouble.

"It could have been worse," Klinsmann said. "The draw gives us every possibility."

It's in the latter rounds in which the Germans will get their most severe test against the best in the world. Sure, playing at home will get them a boost or two. But what happens when they run into the likes of talented sides such as England and Sweden in the second round, Argentina and the Netherlands in the quarterfinals and either the Czech Republic, Italy or France during the ultimate crunch time?

Klinsmann has demonstrated he isn’t afraid to make bold decisions. He selected Arsenal’s Jen Lehmann over 2002 World Cup Golden Ball winner Oliver Kahn as his No. 1 keeper. Kahn’s form and health over the past several years has been questionable, opening the door for Lehmann to grab the top spot. Lehmann recently made international headlines for the wrong reason when he was red-carded early in the European Champions League final against Barcelona, forcing the English club to play a man down the rest of the way. The Spanish side went on to win, 2-1.

Klinsmann has implemented style a "fast-paced, attacking and very aggressive," which has helped the attack, but hindered the defense. The Germans paid for that dearly with a relatively inexperienced defense that allowed 11 goals in five games in the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup – hosted by Germany.

So, a lot of responsibility and pressure will fall on the shoulders of Michael Ballack, who should have some World Cup fire in him after missing the 2002 championship due to a pair of yellow cards. Whether he has the fortitude and strength to take this team on his back in the mold of a Franz Beckenbauer, it remains to be seen. Some of his German critics think Ballack is overrated. Chelsea's billionaire owner Roman Abramovich and coach Jose Mourinho certainly don't as they made a push to sign Ballack before the World Cup began in the spring of 2006.

Fortunately for Ballack, he has some help in the midfield with Bastien Schweinsteiger and Sebastien Deisler in a platoon that could be the stregnth of the team.

The scoring responsibilities will fall to Miroslav Klose, who connected for four of his team-high five goals at the 2002 competition against Saudi Arabia, and 20-year-old Lukas Podolski, who has gotten off to a fast interntional start (10 goals in 20 matches). Podolski, who plays for struggling Colgone in the Bundesliga, is best suited for a position just behind the forward line thanks to his powerful shot and acceleration. He has an attitude, however, and he hasn't scored much for his club team this season.

After one controversy after another and his job being on the line, Klinsmann actually had the audacity to say he would consider staying on as coach after the World Cup.

"It is a possibility that I might remain the national coach after the World Cup," he was quoted in Kicker in March.