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Source: Agence France-Presse English Wire
BERLIN, June 7, 2006 (AFP) - Germany skipper Michael Ballack admitted on Wednesday that the team he leads into the World Cup is flawed and is a shadow of the great German sides of the past.
"This team makes mistakes and that is why I go into this tournament a bit unsure," Ballack said in an interview with Berliner Tagesspiegel.
"We should not forget that we do not have a team like at the 1990 World Cup or even at Euro 1996.
"Those sides had a lot more established players with international experience."
West Germany won the 1990 World Cup with greats such as Lothar Matthaus, Thomas Haessler and Rudi Voller while a united Germany took the Euro 96 title with Matthias Sammer and Jurgen Klinsmann leading from the front.
Klinsmann is now in charge of the team and has heaped pressure on the hosts by saying that anything less than winning the trophy would be a failure.
Captain Ballack goes along with that target, but admits the Germany team has its problems.
"The results and the performances in the build-up to the World Cup show this team is up and down and not very stable," explained Ballack.
"We want to base our game on attack and get forward quickly but sometimes we go forward too quickly and lose the ball.
"But there are still a lot of things to encourage us and we can certainly do it (win World Cup)."
Germany face Costa Rica on Friday in the tournament's opening game in Munich.
Ballack is a doubt due to a calf injury, before further Group A matches against Poland and Ecuador.
Is he right and we can discount Germany? Or is this another dastardly hun plot to throw us?
Can you imagine Beckham being quoted saying 'we're not as good as the 1990? team'
BERLIN, June 7, 2006 (AFP) - Germany skipper Michael Ballack admitted on Wednesday that the team he leads into the World Cup is flawed and is a shadow of the great German sides of the past.
"This team makes mistakes and that is why I go into this tournament a bit unsure," Ballack said in an interview with Berliner Tagesspiegel.
"We should not forget that we do not have a team like at the 1990 World Cup or even at Euro 1996.
"Those sides had a lot more established players with international experience."
West Germany won the 1990 World Cup with greats such as Lothar Matthaus, Thomas Haessler and Rudi Voller while a united Germany took the Euro 96 title with Matthias Sammer and Jurgen Klinsmann leading from the front.
Klinsmann is now in charge of the team and has heaped pressure on the hosts by saying that anything less than winning the trophy would be a failure.
Captain Ballack goes along with that target, but admits the Germany team has its problems.
"The results and the performances in the build-up to the World Cup show this team is up and down and not very stable," explained Ballack.
"We want to base our game on attack and get forward quickly but sometimes we go forward too quickly and lose the ball.
"But there are still a lot of things to encourage us and we can certainly do it (win World Cup)."
Germany face Costa Rica on Friday in the tournament's opening game in Munich.
Ballack is a doubt due to a calf injury, before further Group A matches against Poland and Ecuador.
Is he right and we can discount Germany? Or is this another dastardly hun plot to throw us?
Can you imagine Beckham being quoted saying 'we're not as good as the 1990? team'
