Aggressive Germans charm the world

Munich: If Germany are to win the World Cup for the fourth time in their history this year, it should be a lot of fun watching them do it.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter said this week that his greatest wish was to see plenty of goals and how the Germans obliged in a frantic 4-2 win over Costa Rica in Group A on Friday.

It was the highest scoring opening match in the 18 editions of the tournament and showed Juergen Klinsmann should be taken at his word when he says his young team is prepared to throw caution to the winds in pursuit of a direct, aggressive style.

Miroslav Klose was named man of the match for scoring two goals that will ensure his 28th birthday celebrations go on long into the night, and be shared by Germans everywhere.

Paulo Wanchope, the highest scorer in Costa Rican history, got two as well, as the unfancied central Americans exposed the German defence time and again.

The first and last goals were by the far the best, though, as Germany showed that even without Michael Ballack, who missed the game with a calf injury, they still have a great deal of quality, at least up front.

"With six goals that was a cool way to start the World Cup," said the 41-year-old, who was part of a much less attractive team that won in 1990. "We played at a very high tempo."

They certainly did.

Philipp Lahm, the 22-year-old left-back playing at his home ground, got the tournament underway with a beautifully struck right-foot curler, in off the keeper's left-hand post, within six minutes.

Unfortunately for Klinsmann, the pace and aggression of forwards like Bastian Schweinsteiger and Lukas Podolski is not in evidence in his defence.

Arne Friedrich, as leaden-footed on the right of defence as Lahm is quick, handed Costa Rica the equaliser in the 12th minute when he played Wanchope onside for an easy finish.

Klose scored a hat-trick in Germany's first match of the last World Cup, an 8-0 win over Saudi Arabia that set the Germans on their way to the final.

They lost that game 2-0 against Brazil, with Ballack suspended, but this time the absence of the midfielder was barely noticed thanks to the energy and guile of Torsten Frings and the stand-in captain Bernd Schneider.

Schneider's cut-back gave Schweinsteiger space to thread a cross over for Klose to turn in at the far post for 2-1 and the Polish-born striker smacked in his second in the 61st.

Klinsmann brought on Sebastian Kehl in a bid to close down the match but within a minute Wanchope had got the better of the defence again to score his second.

It was all getting nervous for the 66,000 in the stadium before Frings capped his best display for Germany with a brutally swerving shot from about 30 metres.

Germany are weak in three of their four defensive positions and better teams than Costa Rica will expose them in later rounds, even if they come through unscathed from further group games against Poland and Ecuador.

The bandwagon is rolling now, though, and however long it lasts it should be an enjoyable ride.