Soccer: 'Lucky' Germany now think they can go all the way

SEOGWIPO - A goal two minutes from fulltime gave triple champions Germany a 1-0 win over Paraguay and a place in the quarter-finals.

The dull match, the first of the second round, was drifting towards extra time when striker Oliver Neuville, starting his first game at the finals, latched on to a cross by Bernd Schneider and struck home a first-time shot from 6m.

Paraguay midfielder Roberto Acuna was sent off in the dying seconds after striking Germany's playmaker Michael Ballack in an off-the-ball incident.

The South American team were knocked out of the 1998 cup with the first and only golden goal scored at a finals, by Laurent Blanc for eventual champions France.

Their flamboyant goalkeeper and captain Jose Luis Chilavert said: "The Germans were lucky. We lost, but we lost well. Germany didn't play better than us, we matched them."

But German coach Rudi Voeller said: "We deserved to win. I believe we were the better team. We have to see the tournament realistically. We have been able to stand up to the pressure.

"We came here knowing we're not a team that can put other teams up against the wall. Our goal has been to reach the semifinals. We have to maintain our modesty now."

The Germans go on to meet either Mexico or the United States, but Voeller said he had no preference regarding their opponents.

"Both are very good teams and I do not mind who we play," he said. "All the teams left had a very good first round."

German goalkeeper and captain Oliver Kahn said: "The most decisive thing is the mentality, the belief we can stay in the tournament and advance.

"Everything is possible now. It's thoroughly possible we can run all the way through."

Germany have reached the last eight of the cup 14 out of 15 times in the past 50 years - the exception was 1978. Paraguay have never advanced beyond the second round.

Paraguay's manager Cesare Maldini resigned after the loss.

"I'm going to Milan to work as a scout," he said. "This has been a great experience, the Paraguayans have been very professional."

Maldini, who led Italy to the quarter-finals of the 1998 tournament, took over Paraguay last December.

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