Planet Soccer: Lehmann Saves the Day for Germany as Michel Manages 120 Minutes Without Controversy (posted July 1st, 2006 from Berlin)

Before telling about the match I attended today at Berlin’s Olympiastadion, I’d like to take you back to yesterday. After arriving here at 5 Rochstrasse near the Alexanderplatz in what used to be East Berlin, I settled in by doing some blogging and getting to know the half-dozen-or-so guys hanging around www.worldcupblog.org ‘s Berlin headquarters.

After a while, we all headed out to celebrate Bob Kellett’s birthday. He’s our spiritual leader and chief blogger. I had only met the mellow maestro earlier that evening as well as all but two of the crew – who came from such distant places as Indonesia, Romania, and the city I lived in for fifteen years and will probably be living in again someday…Portland, Oregon.

Several German beers were consumed by us all in Hakescher Market – a nearby square packed with people excited about the next day’s quarterfinal match. Sometime after midnight we headed back to HQ and I was ready to call it a night, a little jet-lagged from my ridiculously long twenty-four hours of travel, but most of the gang headed out for one more just a few doors down from our pad at a place called The Co-op. I was talked into going because the leftist proprietor is staunchly anti-Bush and his place is littered with all sorts of posters, fliers, artwork, literature, and even clothing with that message.

And since I love America but not its leader, I was curious to check this place out…and have another beer. But as 1am came and went I began to fade and started to browse some of the ladies’ fashions to perhaps buy a unique gift for Jill. While I was browsing some funky doubloons, a recognizable-looking character walked in and glanced at me as he passed by.

I continuing with what I was doing, thinking how good Jill might look in those politically-charged capris covered in pretty daisies and anti-Bush rhetoric. But moments later, the familiar-looking guy said, “Cor-Man?” And that’s when I realized that the reason he seemed so familiar was because I actually know him.

It was a guy named DJ who went to college with a good friend of mine at the University of Vermont. DJ lives in San Francisco now and runs a soccer program of some kind and coaches a bunch too…I think. Anyway, last time I saw him was a few years ago when I was visiting some friends in the Bay Area and hooked up with him for a beer one night in the Castro District.

So anyway, there I was in Berlin for less than eight hours, and as so often happens to me, I had already crossed paths with an old friend. I thought that was pretty cool.

But you’re probably more interested in my day at the Olympiastadion and the titanic clash between hosts Germany and South American heavyweights Argentina. After writing all morning and then napping in the early afternoon, still a little battered from jet-lag, my new friend/colleague Nick – who lives in Bali and works as a travel writer for a website (www.bootsnall.com) that’s operated by the same guys who operate this one – and I headed out around two o’clock.

We hit the nearby Hakescher Market train station and arrived at the Olympiastadion half-an-hour later. Nick wasn’t going to the game, he was on assignment to take as many photos as possible of the supporters in their creative costumes and plumage. To see some of what we saw, check out http://photos.worldcupblog.org and click on the photos for June 30th, 2006.

Anyway, it was a pretty lively scene to say the least, but around quarter-to-four I finally headed through the turnstile and made my way around the stadium made famous by Jesses Owens’ four gold medals in the 1936 Summer Olympics, with Hitler looking on from the stands. On the way to my seats I picked up a few reasonably priced souvenirs and then headed up the stairs to the interior of the massive structure.

By 4:15 –forty-five minutes before kickoff – I had found my seat near one of the corners of the pitch and about thirty or forty rows back above the track that surrounds the field. As I watched the players and referees go through their pre-match drills, I couldn’t help but wonder what was going through Slovakian official Lubos Michel’s mind. This was likely the biggest game he’d ever officiated and the stakes were immense for everyone involved.

Meanwhile, as balls were being kicked about by teams at both ends of the pitch, a specially-designed piece of fabric covered the center circle, which read “A time to make friends…Say no to racism.” It’s a message that I hope people carry with them throughout all the days of their lives.

Ironically, when my neighbors to my right found their seats, racism was one of the first topics we spoke about. One of ‘em noticed the Spain jacket I was wearing and commented that he’d been at the game with France a few days earlier. He was happy that France had won because of the overtly racist comments their coach Luis Aragones had made about Thierry Henry in the past. It’s what led Henry to work with Nike to start the ‘Stand Up, Speak Up’ campaign. And even though I like Spain the country and its people, Spain the team, and many of its players, I also was happy in a way to see Spain go down to France because it was a vindication of sorts for Henry to defeat his racist nemesis Aragones.

So as it turns out, my new friends to my right met in college at American University in D.C. and currently hail from Seattle and Dortmund, respectively. But even the German guy spoke virtually perfect English, so we had a running dialogue together throughout the match.

As the action was about to get underway, I noted to myself that this would be the first game where I wouldn’t have the benefit of instant replay, and being so far from the action I’d have to give the referee the benefit-of-the-doubt on most of his decisions. Plus, as I wanted to actually SEE the game, I didn’t note every detail of the action.

In the moments leading up to kickoff, the announcer told the audience that today was the 5th Annual FIFA Anti-Discrimination Day. Michael Ballack and Juan Pablo Sorin – the respective team captains – each spoke eloquently on this topic; and I hope that their words resonated with the hundreds of millions of people watching around the world.

Then it came time for the national anthems; first Argentina’s which began like a beautiful waltz but concluded in a more stately fashion, and then the German’s which had a not-so-surprisingly Wagnerian feel as the crowd joined in. After the obligatory pre-match photo with the teams and referees, the action quickly commenced.

It didn’t take long to realize that this was going to be a physical affair and that Michel would have his hands full. And as soon as the visitors would gain possession of the ball, the majority of the sellout crowd of 72,000 filled the stadium with a cacophonous whistle that pierced the air and our ears.

It was like a symphony of sorts because when the Germans gained possession the crowd would suddenly rise to its feet in unison and break out into song. The most common and familiar refrain was “Deutschland! Deutschland! Deutschland! Deutschland!” that sometimes I even found myself joining in even though in my heart I was hoping that the side from South America would reign supreme on this most auspicious of footballing occasions.

In only the 3rd minute of the match Michel was on the spot to stop a fray after an Argentine went down after being fouled. Perhaps this is why he felt it necessary to keep the players on a very short leash, calling things quite tightly from the get-go.

In the 7th minute he was on the spot for a foul against Germany, but the thirty-yard effort was directly at Abbondanzieri. Two minutes later the whistles were deafening as Argentina set up to take a corner kick at the end closest to where I was seated.

In the 10th Michel called a foul for Argentina when I think they might’ve preferred to just keep the ball moving since they never lost possession, but Michel was on a mission to not let this match get away from him.

Crowd-favorite Lukas Podolski won a throw-in for the Germans down deep in the 13th, but the play soon ended with an offside. Two minutes later ‘the wave’ began to work its way around the stadium. My neighbor from Dortmund told me that ever since the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, the Germans have always been fond of this crowd ritual.

And perhaps this was the collective response to get the home side motivated since, unlike most of their other games so far, they failed to take the early lead. Perhaps this wasn’t destined to be a goal-fest as both teams were having difficulty finding the target.

Ballack’s effort with his head narrowly missed the goal in the 17th and seconds later Mertesacher’s thirty-five yard effort was well over the crossbar. Back at our end again Sorin and Tevez did well to win a corner on a nice give-and-go, but the near post kick by Riquelme was pretty useless and went over the end line.

Both teams were playing a lot in the midfield with few good opportunities. In fact, Argentina was having the better possessions and would often have the ball quickly returned to them by the German defenders who seemed nervous with the rock at their feet.

In the 24th a long flowing Argentine build-up was well defended and a minute later Michel overturned his linesman by giving the ball to Argentina. The AR did have a better angle on it, but he should’ve probably waited to let Michel make the call since the ball wasn’t on his end of the pitch. This would’ve prevented them from having an opposite opinion, which doesn’t look so good from a fan’s perspective.

In the 29th Crespo was called for handling the ball in the box and a minute later Podolski let the ref know how he felt about the call against Schweinsteiger at the other end.

The Argentines had a nice buildup that led to a free kick for Argentina in the 34th. Michel spotted the ball before moving into the proper position. After the ball had come out and then gone the other direction, an infraction of some kind occurred and Michel had the two players come together to shake hands…the kind of thing that’s useful to both control the game as well as settle the crowd down as well. The ensuing Argentine free kick resulted in a foul in the box in favor of Germany.

The Assistant Ref called a foul for Germany in the 39th, but Argentina quickly regained possession and Tevez tried to force his way through the German defense, but got closed off – losing the ball in the process.

Soon thereafter Tevez won a call in his own defense that was called by the AR on the far side of the pitch. And as Germany broke up yet another Argentine attack, they quickly returned the ball to their South American opponents with a long clearance. It surely wasn’t part of Klinsmann’s game-plan and was likely to be rectified in the second half.

During stoppage time, the AR called a foul for Ballack near the penalty area, but nothing came of that attack. And at the break, the match was surprisingly still scoreless. The German fans seemed only marginally disappointed because at least they were still very much in the game despite only minimal offensive opportunities.

As the second half got underway, Michel was quick to let the players know that he wasn’t about to let this one get away from him. HE was in control and the first caution was issued in only the 46th minute as an Argentine defender – Sorin I think, although it was hard to tell from my seat – was beaten in the corner nearest where I was seated and committed a foul to prevent the attack from continuing beyond him.

But that opportunity would never develop into much for the Germans and the Argentine attack-machine chugged back the other direction towards the end where their fans were mostly situated. They managed to win a corner in the 49th and from that, the visitors suddenly and decisively broke through with a powerful close-range header by Valencia defender Roberto Ayala, who managed to rise above everyone and win the ball for his team and country.

And with that, it suddenly felt as though someone had just died as the stadium fell immediately and eerily silent, stunned by their collective turn in fortune. The dramatic silence of the home fans seemed in a way to mute the enthusiasm and exuberance of the Argentinean fans, who were already making emphatic and vocal gestures in the moments leading up to the goal.

But by the 52nd minute the sadness had turned around and the German fans were back on their feet supporting every attack by their side. Ballack made a terrific cross, but the play would eventually die with a call for offside.

Both Tevez and Ayala would be whistled for fouls in successive plays, but they’d win the ball back and benefit from what seemed like a call that should’ve been made when one of them or their teammates seemingly handled the ball in defense. But me and my neighbors didn’t have the best view of things from nearly eighty yards away, so I have no idea what really happened as the Argentine counter-attack was eventually stymied.

In the 60th minute there was another caution for an Argentinean (#8 I believe) who slid to block the ball, but somehow got a piece of Bernd Schneider instead, just outside the penalty area to the left of the goalie. The ensuing free kick was a complete horror show and sent out over the end line on the other side of the goal. Another wasted opportunity for the Germans.

Minutes later it was the fresh-legged Odonkor who replaced the relatively useless Schneider. He made an immediate impact with his mazy runs, helping to win a corner kick in the 64th. It seemed like the Germans should have put one in here as they had two good chances, including a close-range blast from Ballack that was directly at a defender. Abbondanzieri eventually collected the ball, but put it immediately out of play because a German player was down…and maybe he was hurt too or did he pull something when he tossed it out of touch? It was hard to tell.

But in any event, the crowd was incensed at what they perceived as gamesmanship and time-wasting by the Argentine goalie, letting him know it with more deafeningly piercing whistles. When he did eventually get back up on his feet, Ballack returned the ball to Argentina.

It was the Germans who now seemed to be controlling the flow of things as they’d quickly win another corner that was headed out by the defense. And then in the 69th as Germany was about to take a free kick from approximately forty yards from goal, Abbodanzieri went down again. Surely he couldn’t be faking things me and my neighbors surmised. This seemed legit as it was just too blatant that he’d do such a thing.

But the German whistles rained down once again, even continuing when it became clear that Argentina’s #1 keeper could not continue. Moments after the switch was made the free kick was taken and went nowhere near the intended target.

At this point both coaches began making some tactical decisions as Argentina tried to hold their slim advantage and Germany were desperate to get one back in the final twenty minutes or else find their World Cup dreams coming to an end. Esteban Cambiasso came in for a surprisingly invisible Juan Roman Riquelme – whose primary contribution to the match had been to supply Ayala’s goal on the corner kick. Moments later it was Germany who would bring on super sub Tim Borowski for an ineffective Bastian Schweinsteiger, whose touch kept defying him throughout the match.

Maxi Rodriguez – or M-Rod as I refer to him in my shorthand notations – received a nice ball on the right side of the penalty area but only managed to find the side netting. On the very next play he went down with an injury near the touchline and Lehmann came racing out of his goal to shout at the Argentinean to get up and stop wasting time. With the referee’s insistence, he quickly complied.

Germany would go back on the attack and win a free kick from twenty-seven with a quarter-hour remaining on the clock. That was a fruitless effort, but two minutes later a long-range shot by Germany was almost mishandled by the reserve keeper for Argentina who eventually pounced on it.

In the 78th, Pekerman finally took off a useless and aging Hernan Crespo, but surprisingly replaced him with another striker, Julio Cruz. Me and my neighbors thought that Argentina (as well as the spectators at the stadium and the viewers around the world) could have benefited from the quick footwork and ball-control skills of Leonel Mesi…or perhaps even Pablo Aimar. But a lanky forward was not what Argentina needed at this point in the match with a goal advantage.

And sure enough, Germany’s strategy – and not Argentina’s – would quickly pay off when the also-somewhat-invisible heart of the German midfield, Michael Ballack, sent the ball into the middle from the left where it found the head of Tim Borowski who redirected it to sharp-shooter Miroslav Klose (who’s on his way to winning the Golden Boot) who wrong-footed the keeper by nodding it back to the left post and into the goal. I was making a notation at the time of Ballack’s cross and looked up just in time to see Klose head the ball in thanks to the ecstatic rumblings of the sellout crowd.

It was complete hysteria as flags were waving and songs were being sung – the game all tied up at one with only ten minutes left to play. From this point on everybody was on their feet as the action flowed from end to end.

The final sub of the match came in the 86th minute when Oliver Neuville replaced a tiring Klose, who had done his work for the day. The crowd thought Neuville was fouled in the 87th minute, but Michel signaled otherwise. And a minute later it was M-Rod’s turn to win a caution for taking a dive that seemed like the right call to me from a hundred yards away. Lehmann’s derisive and angry reaction towards his opponent seemed to bolster the referee’s decision as well.

A good offside decision was made a minute later as an Argentine attacker was directly in front of Lehmann on a shot that seemed to have gone out for a corner. But I allayed my neighbors’ fears on this one as I had spotted the infraction as the shot was taken, then noticed the Assistant Referee’s flag at the very far corner of the pitch.

Argentina would win a corner in stoppage time…the game would flow back and forth…and then Odonkor was rightfully booked for a challenge from behind in the dying moments of the match. And at the end of the full ninety minutes, the teams were still knotted up at a goal apiece. The compelling drama would continue for at least another half-hour as those of us in attendance had definitely gotten our money’s worth on this auspicious occasion.

The Argentinean fans were going wild at the other end of the pitch as the first overtime got underway, but the home supporters were soon back on their feet and singing for their team and country.

In the 91st the referee could’ve played advantage, but chose not to in order to tend to a German player injured on the pitch. Two minutes later Tevez seemed to be hurt, but his trainer refused to come out to take a look, insisting that the young superstar get back on his feet and stop pretending. This charade continued for almost a minute or so until Tevez actually went over for a bit of treatment before hustling back onto the pitch. In the end, I think he must’ve had a bit of a knock…or was he just tired?

Cruz was booked for using his arm or elbow on an aerial ball…and then Sorin took down Odonkor after the wily German had slipped his defender.

In the 98th there was a slip, or so it seemed, that ended up being a foul coming out of defense for Argentina. The Germans would win a corner in the 101st as Ballack could barely walk due to some kind of injury…perhaps his calf. The sing-song chanting of “Deutschland!” wasn’t enough to give the Germans the lead…and then in the 103rd a nice Argentine build-up ended up dying as the ball was in the clutches of Jens Lehmann.

Tevez’s 105th minute shot would go wide and the first overtime period would come to an end. As we had all been on our feet for the past half-hour, I noted that Lubos Michel had done an excellent job controlling what had had the potential to be a difficult match. With only fifteen minutes left to play, he had remained free from controversy and allowed the game to flow as much as was possible.

At the start of the final fifteen minutes Lehmann grabbed a long Tevez strike. And a couple minutes later Podolski was stripped and ended up on the ground, but Michel made a good decision not to blow his whistle for a foul.

Argentina won a corner in the 108th minute…it was cleared…and the play would eventually end with an offside decision. The Germans were on the attack in the 110th, but that too would end with a foul by the offense in their opponents’ penalty area. A corner kick for Argentina a minute later posed no threat as it was blasted well beyond the penalty area.

Frings lost out on a tough call at midfield and then Coloccini’s long-range effort was well wide of the target. Two minutes later the Germans would be booked – I didn’t see who – for a rough challenge. On the very next play an Argentinean sent a long lofting ball towards goal, hoping to catch Lehmann off guard. But the effort clanged off the top of the crossbar and out for a goal kick, otherwise, the German keeper might’ve had a tough time keeping that one out of the back of his net. It had shades of David Seaman’s blunder against Ronaldinho four years earlier.

Germany had their best chance since their goal when Odonkor beat his marker down in the corner, but then crossed the ball right to the keeper’s waiting arms. He really should have done better here.

In the 116th an Argentine attacker stopped an attack with a foul and was cautioned for his efforts despite trying to argue that his opponent had taken a dive.

Julio Cruz was stripped of the ball a minute later…the German counter was stymied…the Argentineans were back on the attack…and the shot went well over the bar.

Argentina were called for offside in the 119th minute, but managed to earn a free kick in the 120th when the AR waved his flag to indicate a foul. Their effort was cleared from danger and the referee blew for full time before they had a chance to restart with a throw-in.

After 120 minutes of compelling theater, the winner would have to be decided by kicks from the spot. It’s a method I’m not particularly fond of, but definitely results in a dramatic finish.

And here’s how it went as everyone was still on their feet in gripped suspense…

Now, before the kicks were taken at the far end of the stadium in front of the Argentine fans, the big screen showed Oliver Kahn wishing his rival and teammate Jens Lehmann well.

The Germans kicked first and…

1) Oliver Neuville blasted it into the top-right corner…
2) Argentina’s Julio Cruz matched that effort and went top-left…and Lehmann had barely missed it, guessing the right way…
3) The injured Michael Ballack was Germany’s #2 kicker and he blasted it in as the keeper guessed the wrong way…
4) The Argentine goal-scoring defender Roberto Ayala apparently hoped that Lehmann would guess the wrong way, but he didn’t; and his weak roller to the right was easily saved. The partisan crowd went wild!!!
5) Podolski whacked it to the right with his left foot; the keeper guessing the wrong way again…and the German enthusiasm was building and the tension was palpable…
6) M-Rod’s shot to the left post was perfectly placed and barely beat the German keeper…
7) Borowski was on target as once again the Argentine goalie guessed the wrong way…
8) Cambaisso needed to score to keep Argentina alive…and everyone knew it. The nearly perfect Lehmann was right on cue again, diving to his left to block the Argentine effort, thus securing a historic German victory against Argentina, 4 – 2 on penalties, at the Olympiastadion!!

The place went berserk the moment Lehmann touched the ball and the collective sense of relief and joy was overwhelming even though I had wanted Argentina to win the match. It’s most assuredly a feeling that I’ll likely never experience for the rest of my life. For how often will I see a victory by the home team in such a dramatic World Cup match?

Congratulations to Germany and their fans on this unforgettable occasion. And to Lubos Michel, thank you too for doing your part in making this an incredible footballing spectacle.

Until next time…

peace,
ac