Till now he hasn’t showed a glimpse of what he is known for- a consistent scorer- Miroslav Klose. He is the only player in the history of football to score five or more goals in consecutive outings in the World Cup.
His tally of 39 goals for the national team in 78 outings tells a lot about Miroslav Klose, he hasn’t fired yet but in the knock out stage German’s journey to final four will depend upon his performance.
In the absence of Lukas Podolski against Portugal on Thursday would have added strategic woes to Joachim Löw’s but he is hoping Klose to get his acts together.
Being the highest scorer in the team, Klose has to fire all his tactics on the pitch when he will face Portuguese defence. Scolari’s men will not be an easy target this time around for him, the line of defence which consist of Pepe, Miguel, Ricardo Carvalho and Deco’s run from midfield will be tough to tear.
The Golden Boot winner of 1996 World Cup believes in ‘giving everything’ and Löw is confident about his forward, he often praised his efforts in the nets, soon Klose will get close to his lost form.
His last appearance in 2004 Euro was forgetful, he turn on the pitch twice as substitute but didn’t made any impact to Germany’s abysmal performance in Portugal.
Before coming to the competition Klose had shown a lot of promise and strengthen their claims of being favourites for the cup but after the league stage Klose is away from his deft touch.
Can he deliver against Portugal? It will come only on Thursday.
Achievements
German championship 2008
German Cup 2008
League Cup 2007
Bundesliga, leading scorer 2006
German Player of the Year 2006
Runner-up at 2002 World Cup
Third at 2006 World Cup
Golden Shoe as leading scorer at the 2006 World Cup
Silver Shoe as second-best scorer at the 2002 World Cup