Germans hope to give Loew a high

Banished from the bench: Joachim Loew is sent to the stands after clashing with the fourth official during Germany's victory over Austria

Ian Chadband

13 April 2012

If you had been told before Euro 2008 that Portugal would play Germany in the quarter-final with one of the coaches banned from any contact with his team for the night after getting involved in a touchline bust-up in a group game, who would you have wagered the miscreant to be?

The human volcano that is Luiz Felipe Scolari? Or the placid gentleman, Joachim Loew?

That's right, Germany can't quite believe it either. While Chelsea's new boss Scolari has been known to patrol his zone like a cage fighter, on occasion going faintly ballistic while throwing a punch or two at opposition players and coaches, Loew's only crime has been to look nattily attired and in control like some cool but ageing refugee from an 80s new wave band.

Until Monday's nonsense against Austria, that is. Suddenly, their Hugo Boss clad boss was held up as a bad boy, having been dispatched to the stands, along with his Austrian counterpart Josef Hickersberger, by the referee following the coaches' dispute with the fourth official just before half-time.

That the incident in Vienna should have earned "Jogi" a UEFA ban for the biggest match of his life tonight has, rightly, outraged Germans. They think a man of honour has had his reputation unjustly stained after being the victim of a misunderstanding in a minor drama which was turned into a crisis by an absurdly over-zealous Spanish referee, Manuel Mejuto.

Even Scolari seems to agree, reckoning that if he had his way, UEFA would let Loew back on the bench for a game which could shape the 48-year-old's entire career. Because far from fighting with Hickersberger, everyone now seems agreed that a man with an impeccable record of respect towards match officials had actually only been trying to help plead the Austrian's case to the fourth official that the pair of them had every right to use the technical area.

How significant his touchline absence will be in practical terms is debatable. For as Portugal striker Nuno Gomes noted yesterday, Germany only scored their winner against Austria when he'd already been banished to the stands, where the extra distraction awaited of having to explain himself to his neighbour, German chancellor Angela Merkel.

Yet in terms of psychology, don't underestimatehow the power of indignation may now be fuelling Germany's bid. "I am certain what's happened to Joachim will be tied to giving the team extra motivation," said German FA president, Theo Zwanziger. Just as Portugal's players keep citing the idea of winning as a farewell tribute to Scolari, Michael Ballack's men are now moved to ensure Loew doesn't have to suffer the injustice of watching helplessly from the posh seats as his debut tournament collapses.

"It's really hurting him, because it's a special game and he won't be able to use his intuition on the bench," said German team manager Oliver Bierhoff. Neither would Loew dream of using Mourinho-like subterfuge to contact his players although if he ever did, a laundry basket would certainly be the modus operandi for a man who does love a clean, crisp shirt.

Suddenly the odds seem stacked against his men, the pre-tournament favourites. They've lost a bit of their sheen with the defeat by Croatia, they've lost their coach for a night, they've lost a day's rest compared to Portugal and while Scolari has the luxury of selecting the same team which disposed confidently of Turkey and the Czech Republic, Germany may have also lost key players, Lukas Podolski and Torsten Frings, through injury.

It makes the test for Loew an unenviable one. Germany has warmed to 'Jogi' as being smarter than the average coach, enjoying his seriousness, his lack of airs and graces, his quiet determination to shun the celebrity trappings and a fierce determination to guard his privacy.

They've been won over too by his tactical mastery, by the obvious admiration he commands within his squad and by a record of three defeats in 27 games. It's why Jurgen Klinsmann always thought "he's much more than just my assistant".

Yet the judgment still only really starts now. The Croatian loss and the struggle against Austria betrayed rare jitters. Predecessors like Klinsmann, Franz Beckenbauer, Rudi Voller and Berti Vogts were protected to an extent by their reputation as illustrious players. Loew, who never really made the grade as an attacking midfielder in the Bundesliga, doesn't have that luxury; he needs to win far more than a Brazilian opponent whose future in SW6 is already assured.

Indeed, all the evidence from Scolari's latest public appearance was that his ring of confidence is only enhanced by knowing that, win or lose, an equally compelling new challenge always awaits. This is a man who plans for tournaments would a general in a a cut-throat military campaign but he was positively mellow as he condemned UEFA's punishment of Loew, offering his support with the observation: "It's not a question of my confidence but a question of friendship."

Seeing him this relaxed, entertaining and theatrical could only make you imagine that life at Stamford Bridge is going to be immeasurably more colourful next season. "I don't expect it to be my last Portugal game," Scolari boomed in finest Mourinho fashion. "We're booked into our hotel until after the semi-finals." Chelsea, he wanted everyone to know, could wait a while.

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