Poles face Ballack magic threat

Poland face the cruel threat of being knocked out of the World Cup by the best two Polish-born strikers in the tournament...

Poland face the cruel threat of being knocked out of the World Cup by the best two Polish-born strikers in the tournament when they face Germany in their Group A match in Dortmund on Wednesday. Miroslav Klose, who scored twice for Germany in their opening day 4-2 win over Costa Rica, and his precocious sidekick Lukas Podolski, 21, were born in Poland and came to Germany when they were children.

“We’re glad they’re on our side because they are exceptional players,” Germany coach Juergen Klinsmann said at a news conference ahead of the game. “It will be a special moment for the two of them because they do have Polish roots and they even speak Polish together on the pitch. “Playing Poland might just be an additional motivation to score a goal.”

Poland, beaten 2-0 by Ecuador in their first game, need a win to get back in contention for a place in the last 16. The Poles have never managed to beat Germany in 85 years of trying, while the Germans hold an unbeated 13-match streak at the Westfalenstadion in Dortmund. However, Germany have not beaten another European team in the finals of a major tournament since overcoming Czech Republic in the Euro 96 final, a match Klinsmann played in. Germany’s victory over Costa Rica provided a welcome release of tension for Klinsmann and now they will have captain Michael Ballack back in the side after he missed the opening game with a calf strain.

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Officials: Referee: Luis Medina Cantalejo (Spain), Assistant Referees: Victoriano Giraldez Carrasco (Spain) & Pedro Medina Hernandez (Spain), Fourth official: Khalil Al Ghamdi (Saudi Arabia), Stand-by: Fathi Arabati (Jordan)

European jinx

Germany’s chance to end a decade-long run of failure against European teams in the finals of major tournaments.

• Their golden-goal win over Czech Republic at Wembley in the final of Euro 96 was the last time they beat a European side in a big competition.

• Since then they have failed in nine matches, including defeats by Croatia in the 1998 World Cup, England and Portugal at Euro 2000 and the Czechs at Euro 2004.

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• There have also been draws with Yugoslavia at France 98, Romania at Euro 2000, Ireland at the 2002 World Cup and Netherlands and Latvia at the last European championship.

Kevin Fylan

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