Sat, Jun 24, 2006 page18

• Cup Watch: How soccer explains the universe

  LOW SELF-ESTEEM? Despite their team's great start to the World Cup, German fans are not getting carried away

  • By Sean Scanlan / CONTRIBUTING REPORTER
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  A makeshift table neatly set with tall glasses of Erdinger and dinner entrees sat in front of four silent Germans. Behind them, a row of compatriots in black-and-white jerseys shared a similar mood as they stood shoulder-to-shoulder in the Tavern Premier.

  Taipei's Germany supporters have been mostly quiet thus far in the World Cup, reflecting a secular national psyche that has replaced faith with feelings of doubt and low self-esteem. Surprising for a side that has won three World Cups and made seven finals appearances.

  "Germans are always nervous when our team plays, we are rarely confident," German national Klaus Wohlbold said.

  

  Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi of Japan lets in a shot from Juninho during the Group F match between Japan and Brazil in Dortmund on Thursday. A moment of stupidity, perhaps?

  PHOTO: EPA

  As an example, Germans dwell on minute details such as two goals surrendered to Costa Rica in an otherwise flawless first round.

  "I tell you, if we give up two goals again we will get beaten by either Argentina or Brazil," Wohlbold says.

  Wohlbold should know what he is talking about -- twice playing against Juergen Klinsmann when the latter was a member of the youth team, the Stuttgart Kickers.

  Klinsmann's storied career gave him permission to shake up German soccer, first by discarding older players, then adopting a new style of play.

  Wohlbold says the change was in response to a larger crisis in German soccer, with the national Bundesliga seeing less participation from German nationals and a greater influx of international players.

  For example, Wohlbold cited a recent Bundesliga match pitting Munich against Cottsburg, where only one of the 22 players on the pitch was German. The individual happened to be the Munich goalkeeper -- and the local media sensationalized the story.

  Globalization of soccer may have led German clubs to opt for foreign players rather than homegrown talent, Wohlbold says.

  But so far, Klinsmann's changes are still being respected, and another World Cup would vindicate his vision.

  In stark contrast to the calm and steady play of the Germans, East Asia's two sides, South Korea and Japan, have been playing a panicky, schizophrenic style of football.

  "You can see them celebrate goals and good play, and then a second later they do something stupid," Wohlbold says.

  Local audiences are resembling their Asian teams in temperament, turning out en masse at local bars and celebrating wildly for teams ranging from Argentina to England.

  Over the past weekend, the Tavern saw large groups of fans outside its main entrance, occasionally jostling for position and a chance to enter despite a long waiting period. A stark contrast to the calm German supporters inside the bar.

  "I remind everyone that we are one of the few bars that accept reservations," says Tavern proprietor, Michel Blanc.

  A Swiss national, Blanc has resorted to this "neutral" policy rather than taking sides.
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