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Rudi Voeller assured the German fans that the German national team does not have any problems in the goalkeeper position. In an interview with the football magazine "Kicker," the head coach of the national team tried to dispel the hysteria that had focused on the mistakes of Oliver Kahn and Jens Lehmann. This hysteria arose in the German sports media.
Throughout its rich history, the German national team has never had any problems with goalkeepers. In every squad, there was either a top-class goalkeeper or at least a qualified specialist who could save the team when needed. The well-developed defense of the "German machine" rarely allows opponents to put too much pressure on their goalkeeper. However, when needed, German goalkeepers have always played simply and reliably. One can remember Andreas Kopke standing in the German goal not long ago.
Today's German national team also cannot complain about weak goalkeeper performance. Oliver Kahn, rightfully considered one of the best goalkeepers in the world, performed excellently in the World Cup in Japan and Korea. In most cases, thanks to him, Germany, with possibly the weakest squad in its entire World Cup history, reached the final, only losing to the miraculous Brazilians.
However, just before Euro 2004, both Oliver Kahn and his closest competitor Jens Lehmann made a series of mistakes that German fans couldn't ignore. Especially memorable was the episode when Kahn missed a seemingly caught ball after a long-range penalty kick by Roberto Carlos in a Champions League match between [clubs]. It's not that Kahn let down his team, but he certainly didn't secure it. Jens Lehmann, on the other hand, "distinguished himself" in a similar way in the Champions League as well. After deflecting a free-kick, he allowed Frank Lampard to calmly direct the ball into the empty net.
However, such a spate of mistakes by Kahn and Lehmann doesn't bother national team head coach Rudi Voeller at all.
- Jens Lehmann played terribly in both the Arsenal and Chelsea Champions League quarter-final matches. Oliver Kahn made a mistake in a game against Real Madrid, as well as cup matches with Aachen and a friendly against Croatia. Do you not think that there is a goalkeeper problem in the German national team before the European Championship in Portugal?
- It's all nonsense. We don't feel any goalkeeper problems: neither the national team nor German football should worry. I'm not inclined to dramatically assess the mistakes of Jens Lehmann in the first match against Chelsea, as some critics do. Yes, in that game, at times he didn't make the right decisions, but at the same time Jens constantly proves his high level. Take, for example, the match against Belgium, where he performed impeccably.
- Will there be any changes in the position of the national team's first-choice goalkeeper? For example, Hildebrand, who has shown consistent play this season, could compete with one of the main goalkeepers?
- There's no need to change everything just because of one or a few mistakes. Following that logic, Real Madrid would have to change the whole team after losing 4-0 to Real Sociedad.
- By the way, how would you explain Real's failure?
- The defeats of Real Madrid and Arsenal show the differences between football and, for example, Formula-1. In Formula-1, everything is known in advance: when the best driver Michael Schumacher races with the best car, there can be no surprises. This makes the races boring and does not stimulate spectator interest. In football, on the other hand, you can lose in every match, even if the best team plays against an underdog. That's the charm of football!
