Klose cracks smile after his miserable season

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Louise Thomas

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Just a couple of weeks ago Germany's Miroslav Klose was persona non grata among German fans following his trickle of league goals but the striker has silenced his critics with a sparkling comeback.

On Sunday the 32-year-old, who came into the World Cup after what appeared his worst season in years with just three league goals for Bayern Munich, could finally crack a smile.

Pushing team mate and double goal scorer Thomas Mueller aside and telling him "you've said enough", Klose, who had also just scored in their 4-1 demolition of England to steer Germany into the quarter-finals, was in high spirits.

He had just netted his 50th international goal - his second in this tournament - on his 99th appearance and could not hide his satisfaction.

"No, I did not want to show anyone anything. I just wanted to prove it to myself," he said of Germany's first goal, when he sprinted past two England defender to slot the ball home.

Only days ago he had been sent off in their Group D defeat by Serbia and had to sit out Germany's narrow 1-0 win over Ghana that sent them through the group stage.

The discussion as to whether he was too old had again kicked off back home.

"I was just happy that the team won against Ghana and I could play against England," he said after scoring what was his 12th World Cup goal.

The Poland-born striker is now level with Pele on the all-time World Cup scorers list, just three behind top scorer Ronaldo on 15.

"Back then when I was a kid it was a dream to have such a record, of scoring at every second Germany game I play. Even just playing in the national team was a dream back then," he said with a dry smile.

The soft-spoken Klose is lying in ninth place in the list of Germany's most-capped players, behind such illustrious players as Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Mueller and Juergen Klinsmann.

He has now won one more cap than captain Michael Ballack, who missed the World Cup through injury.

On Germany's all-time scorers list he is in third place, with Mueller on top with 68 goals.

He will most take his international appearances to 100 when Germany face Argentina for a spot in the semi-finals.

"There is still a lot that is possible here and it would be a mistake to start asking ourselves how far we can go," he said. "But if we play the game like we played it today then we will go far. We can apply it against any opponent."

After such a turnaround who would dare bet against him.

Klose also said he was keen to see the introduction of goal-line technology in football, even though his side benefited from its absence against England.

A goal from Klose had helped put Germany 2-1 ahead when a Frank Lampard shot in the 38th minute hit the underside of the crossbar, bounced down over the goal-line and came back out. Uruguayan referee Jorge Larrionda and his assistants failed to see that the ball had clearly crossed the line and no goal was given, with Germany going on to win the last 16 match 4-1.

The Bayern Munich striker does not understand why technology cannot be used which tells officials instantly whether a goal has been scored or not.

He said: "If the technology is there, whether it's a chip in the ball or a goal-line camera. If these technical things are there then they should be used.

"Television evidence is another thing altogether, what I am talking about is chip technology or goal-line cameras. It's visible in tennis, it's visible in other sports, so why not in football as well?"

The sport's world governing body FIFA have said they have no plans for further experiments with goal-line technology, although they came under pressure to revise that policy today following events in Bloemfontein yesterday.

They found a supporter though in Germany midfielder Sami Khedira, with the Stuttgart man saying: "The discussion has been going on for a long time now but, to be frank, we as players are happy with the way it is. Because in the long run, these things even out and get balanced out. It's all part of the game and part of the emotions that define football as a game."

Rio Ferdinand, the England captain, ruled out of the competition with a knee injury, watched the old enemy run rampant in the last-16 clash in Bloemfontein.

Joachim Low's side were 2-1 up when Lampard's shot hit the crossbar and landed a good yard over the line, only for the goal not to be given by the Uruguayan officials.

In the second half a dominant Germany showing rendered that decision academic but Ferdinand believes it may have been a different story had the sides gone in 2-2 at the break.

Ferdinand said: "If Lamps' goal had stood it would have been 2-2 and then the game would've turned on its head. We'd have been at full throttle. I'm sure we'd have gone on to win it. I was sitting here with my mates and we were all screaming at the TV along with everyone else in the pubs going bananas. I'm a professional footballer but I'm also a fan so I know what it's like."