Hush…Germans are practising

“The New Zealanders know enough about us. We don’t need to feed them any further information,” said coach Erich Ribbeck in explanation of the secrecy.

Germany are in a must-win situation if they want to reach the semifinals of the eight-team tournament. They rank last in Group A with zero points behind Brazil (three points), United States (3) and the Kiwis (0).

The defending champions Brazil can all but clinch a place in the final four if they defeat the US in Thursday’s other game. The final matches on Saturday are Germany vs US and Brazil vs New Zealand.

“Like all other teams besides Germany, the New Zealanders prepared properly for the tournament,” said Ribbeck in the run-up to the crucial game.

The Germans have been complaining for weeks in general and after Saturday’s drubbing in particular, that their team is not the real national team and that they are only playing to enhance their chances to win the 2006 World Cup.

But veteran captain Lothar Matthaeus, who is expected to have overcome knee problems by Thursday to play his 138th cap, insisted there was a difference between Saturday’s game and matches in the past.

“We also lost matches in the past, by a 2-1 and 1-0 scoreline. But now we lose 3-0 to Croatia (1998 World Cup), 3-0 to the US (February friendly) and 4-0 to Brazil — that should not happen,” said the 38-year-old freshly crowned German Footballer of the Year.

Ribbeck said he will field two strikers in the form of Olaf Marschall and Michael Preetz on Thursday in an effort to restore Germany’s image after everyone seemingly underestimated the desastrous international reactions after the first game.

For New Zealand, who are coming off a 2-1 defeat against the US, the tournament is the chance of a lifetime for which they prepared six weeks.

“It is a unique chance to show our football to the world,” said mid-fielder Mark Burton, whose team last qualified for a major event at the 1982 World Cup.

However, teammate Aaran Lines would have preferred it had the Germans not been blown away by Brazil: “They are probably pretty upset and we now may be the victims of their anger.”