Germans want Paul on their plate

And the eight-legged soccer soothsayer was spot on Wednesday,as Carles Puyols semi-final header shattered Germanys dreams of winning their fourth World Cup. Two plastic boxes,one with a German flag and one with a Spanish,were lowered into Pauls tank at an aquarium in western Germany,each with a tasty morsel of food inside.

The box which Paul opens first is adjudged to be his predicted winner.

But with classic fickleness,German fans turned against their beloved octopus after he forecast a Spanish win.

According to Der Western daily paper,there have been a host of comments on Facebook,Twitter … suggesting Paul should be fried,barbequed or turned into a seafood salad or paella.

Others wanted to throw him into the shark tank, the paper reported.

Nothing beats grilled octopus, said Dolores Lusch,a Germany fan who works on a Berlin fish stall. Cut him up in thin slices and grill him on all sides with a dash of lemon juice,olive oil and garlic on it. Delicious!

Throw him in the frying pan, wrote the Berliner Kurier newspaper in a popular sentiment echoed by Die Welt,Sueddeutsche Zeitung,the Hamburger Abendblatt and other newspapers.

However,Paul is not done yet. Sea Life spokeswoman Tanja Munzig said he will make his choice on the third-place play off match between Germany and Uruguay on Friday morning,and then pick the winner of Sundays final in Johannesburg.

Nothing bad will happen to Paul, she said. No one wishes him ill-will. Paul has had a great run.