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<h1 class="storyTitle" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; font-size: 2.8em;">全文太长懒得翻译，大意是说德国队输在态度上，所以从对克罗地亚比赛一开始，结局就已经注定。克洛泽对队友各自为战的抱怨在这个个性低调的人身上非常少见，因此尤其可见问题的严重。但也正因为问题出在态度上，德国队在接下来的比赛中仍有希望。<br/></h1><h1 class="storyTitle" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; font-size: 2.8em;"><br/></h1><h1 class="storyTitle" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; font-size: 2.8em;">What a difference a game makes</h1>
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By Uli Hesse-Lichtenberger<br/> (<a href="http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/archive?columnist=20&root=euro2008">Archive</a>)</p>
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<p class="lastUpdate" style="float: left;">Updated: June 13, 2008, 9:21 AM ET</p>
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<p>When television pundit Jürgen Klopp came on yesterday to give his
verdict on the match between Germany and Croatia he'd just seen, he
looked ... well, what's the word? I'm not normally given to martial
expressions, but I guess 'shell-shocked' is the term I have chosen to
settle on.
</p><div class="sp-inlinePhoto"><img width="275" height="200" border="0" src="http://soccernet-assets.espn.go.com/design05/images/JonMC/June2008/gers-275.jpg" alt=""/><div style="width: 275px;"><p class="photoCredit">GettyImages</p><p class="photoDesc">The German side misfired against Croatia.</p></div></div>I'm
also not normally given to quoting tabloids, but it's quite telling
that the notorious 'Bild' newspaper opens its article on the game with:
'Help, what was that?'
Help, indeed. The most lasting impression after the game in
Klagenfurt was that of confusion, not just on the pitch during the 90
minutes but also afterwards. The list of shortcomings was so extensive
that it hardly seemed to matter what exactly went wrong - but why.
And that was a question few seemed able to answer. Or rather,
most of those who stepped in front of cameras and microphones seemed
unwilling to do so. Some, however, dropped a hint or two.
'Compared to the Poland match, the last few percent were
missing,' Michael Ballack said. 'Which surprises me because we knew
we'd be facing a stronger opponent today. Perhaps we thought we'd
already achieved something.' Jens Lehmann was even more direct: 'Today
our hearts weren't in it completely.' And Miroslav Klose added: 'We
didn't present ourselves as a team. Everyone did his own thing, and
you've seen the result of that.'
It's rare for Klose to be so outspokenly critical, but I think
he was particularly annoyed because he'd been one of the first to
realise what was going on, or about to happen. With less than a quarter
of an hour gone and the game still scoreless, he was to be found more
and more often in deepest midfield, frustrated by the lack of balls he
was getting and the huge gaps between the individual parts of the team.
This was primarily due to a collective unwillingness to move
about and thus had actually very little to do with the opposition.
Ballack pointed out that the Croats were well-organised and compact and
closed down space in midfield, but that's hardly an innovative or
surprising strategy. The exact same German players who had been so
agile against Poland now looked static, slow-footed and sluggish.
Paradoxically, this is both very bad news and a reason for hope.
It's bad news because it's an attitude problem. Germany's game
yesterday was a classic example of a team not being mentally up to
scratch when the match kicks off - and then being unable to change
course. Because you can't. If you make tactical errors, you can correct
them during a game. If some players are having a bad day, you can
substitute them. If an opponent is overpowering in certain areas, you
can come up with counter measures.
But if you're not ready for the game when the first whistle
blows, you might as well go home. Unless you have an inordinate amount
of luck - say, you are gifted a penalty or an opponent gets himself
sent off - you'll never turn things around and you'll lose the game.
Players know this, which is why the more experienced ones get
frustrated quickly when they sense such an attitude problem. The
tell-tale signs weren't just Klose's helpless forays into midfield or
Bastian Schweinsteiger's red card (a classic sending-off under those
circumstances).
There were also many other little things, such as the players' body
language. It's been a long time since I have seen so many German
internationals making disdainful gestures, shrugging their shoulders in
despair, furiously waving at team-mates. And that was way before
Croatia's second goal.
An attitude problem is bad news for Germany because it's
unusual. I can remember the last time when our team played badly, but
not when they weren't prepared for the task at hand. This was also very
clearly written on the face of Joachim Löw, who realised that something
had gone badly wrong - not during the game - but before the game. That,
of course, is his responsibility, which is why I don't doubt he'll have
had a sleepless night.
But an attitude problem can also be a reason for cautious
optimism, unless it is deeply ingrained, which shouldn't be the case
here. There is always the chance it will have taught the team a
valuable lesson and won't happen again. Although if it does, we're out
of the tournament on Monday against the co-hosts Austria.
Back in February, Germany played a friendly in Vienna and
Austria's legend Hans Krankl was a pundit for German tv. After the
match he was first asked to comment on Austria's performance. And then
the German presenter said: 'And what did you think about one of the
Euro 2008 favourites, Germany?' <div class="sp-inlinePhoto"><img width="275" height="200" border="0" src="http://soccernet-assets.espn.go.com/design05/images/JonMC/June2008/low-275.jpg" alt=""/><div style="width: 275px;"><p class="photoCredit">GettyImages</p><p class="photoDesc">Low: Unsure what happened in Austria.</p></div></div>
Krankl's reply was as succinct as it was surprising to the presenter.
Krankl said he didn't consider the Germans favourites. He said he
regarded Croatia as the better team and as one of the dark horses to go
all the way. Then he said: 'I guess that the Croats will be through
after two games and that the Germans will need a result from their
final match, against Austria. And that will be a situation the Germans
should not be happy about.'
And he's right, we're not happy about it. I guess most people
from foreign countries have no idea how strong the rivalry between
Germany and Austria is.
Tuning in to German television after the Austria versus Poland game
might have given them an idea, though. The show was being broadcast
from Bregenz, in Austria, and there were hundreds of Austrians in the
crowd. They started singing 'Germany, we're coming!' and someone
yelled: 'There will be a new Cordoba!'
If you don't know what that is referring to, check the results
of the 1978 World Cup. Germany's 3-2 defeat at the hands of Austria is
still one of our most traumatic losses ever. Three weeks ago, there was
even a Cordoba Revival game in Bregenz, billed as 'The Battle of the
Legends'. Germany played with Paul Breitner, Hansi Müller, Karlheinz
Riedle, Klaus Augenthaler, Manfred Kaltz and some other former stars.
They must have suffered from an attitude problem. Austria won 5-0.
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