FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) – The hotel rooms already have been booked, now comes the tough part – making the trip. Even a 0-0 draw against Ukraine will be enough Wednesday to qualify Germany, a three-time champion, for the World Cup finals next year in Japan and South Korea. Germany, which did not enter in 1930 and 1950, has never failed to qualify but it has had close calls before.
This could be the closest they’ve ever come to disaster. Their confidence already in tatters, the Germans were humiliated by England 5-1 at home and then could not manage more than a 0-0 against Finland, when a goal would have put them ahead of England. Rudi Voeller’s team has endured months of bitter criticism at home for a series of uninspired performances since Euro 2000.
All that will be forgotten if the Germans qualify Wednesday at the Westfalenstadion, which has sold out all 52,000 seats. Everybody wants to show what they can do. I think we’ll clinch it, Voeller said. After the 1-1 draw in Kyiv on Saturday, the Germans will go through either with a 0-0 draw or any victory. Because of the away goals rule, if Ukraine scores two or more, Germany will have to win. The Germans have been cautiously optimistic, while warning fans not to expect a high quality match. The result we obtained in Kyiv is quite positive. But only if we play with the same commitment on Wednesday, Voeller said.
Only then can we succeed. Against Ukraine, you always run the risk of coming under counterattack and then it can really get dangerous, the team chief said. We want to keep our defense compact, but we must not play for a 0-0 draw, that would be fatal, Voeller said. We have to score goals. Ukraine’s away record speaks for its deadly counterattack efficiency. During qualifications, Ukraine won three on the road and drew two other matches, scoring a goal in each. A 1-1 draw Wednesday will send the match into sudden-death extra time, with the golden goal rule. The Ukrainians, who arrived in Dortmund on Tuesday, are banking on their ability to counter.
We’ll be playing quite differently than in Kyiv, said midfielder Andriy Gusin. The Germans won’t have a chance, we are going to the World Cup. I’m a lot more dangerous when we counter attack, said the AC Milan star striker Andriy Shevchenko, who was largely marked out in Kyiv. But of his nine goals in qualifying, Shevchenko has scored seven away. Voeller is expected to start with Carsten Jancker of Bayern Munich and Oliver Neuville of Bayer Leverkusen in the front. Jancker, who was sidelined for five weeks with a foot injury, came on as a substitute in Kyiv, while Neuville was suspended. Central defender Christian Woerns is also back after missing the Kyiv match with a knee injury.
Some experts have been urging Voeller to consider Oliver Bierhoff for a place in the attack, to exploit Ukraine’s weakness in the air. Voeller has rarely used the striker. While in previous decades Germany always traveled to the World Cup as a favorite to lift the title, this time it will be a success just to get there. We are not a world class team anymore, said Voeller’s assistant Michael Skibbe. To be on the safe side, the Germans already have booked sets of rooms in both Japan and South Korea. My job is not to be superstitious or afraid, my job is to plan ahead, said soccer federation director Bernd Pfaff. If the Germans qualify, they will decide after the Dec. 1 draw whether to be based in Japan or South Korea.
