As Annie Lennox will sing - 'Sweet dreams are made of this', all of us love a good old fairytale, Cinderella-like story. We live in an unpredictable world nowadays. How many times when political lines almost threatened to cross over sporting and/or entertainment lines, we just kept quiet. How many times sports fans always say - sports and politics do not mix.
Ahead of the football World Cup in Germany this June, there were fears of Germany's neo-Nazis using the chance to be violent; fears about Iran's president (who is a football fan) visiting the country in order to support the Iranian team which led to the outisde world especially the US sounding alarm (given the Iranian president's anti-Jewish stance); the US sounding warning about Germany's red-light districts... The rest will say it's for security reasons (given it was revealed sometime back that a terror plot was uncovered which was initally planned during the World Cup to happen).
With all that in mind, the event kicked off in Germany's beer capital Munich (where it's also the scene of the opening match between Germany and Costa Rica). Best time for the Teutonic nation to show that it can have some fun. They showed it when the referee first blew the whistle. In my living memory, no other match had ever seen such a fast-paced action on the pitch during past World Cup's opening matches (given everyone want to be a little cautious). The Germans were totally out in full force. And even up till now, I still want to kick myself for not joining my father in watching the opening match. The German national team scored very early in the opening match and that was what's to come in the tournament ahead. Attacking football - wheeeee.
Suddenly thinking at that time that England has even lesser chance. And their traditional and fierce rivals the host nation Germany seemingly having all the chance in the world. Suddenly watching England playing is a boring affair. Oops. And watching Germany for once - fun, fun, fun. As what ST will eventually comment - The new Germany being a reflection of England's old and England being a reflection of Germany's old. Anyone who is so aware of football history will know that England (being the ones who started the beautiful game) was all-so powerful in the 60s and they went on to win the World Cup of 1966, on home soil. Trivia: Germany was the losing finalists back then in 1966 and up till now 40 years on, they still say that one of England's goals was an offside and should not be counted. But back then, England was already leading. It's still one of those things the English media will bring up every four years when the World Cup is on about their heroic acts in 1966 against their bitter rivals during WWII (Hitler eventually could not invade Britain after the Blitz and went to Russia instead) - Germany. In short - nationalistic pride.
40 years on, who has the last laugh? Certainly not England. The Swede, Sven-Goran Eriksson already came under fire before the World Cup on his selection policies for the England team. Germany-born, American-based Jurgen Klinsmann came under fire before the World Cup for another set of reason - his approach to doing things. It could be because the latter is based in southern California. Sunny, sunny...California. But, someone had the real last laugh during the World Cup and it's him. Much to those who had been criticising him from the start.
As Sheryl Crow sings - 'A change can do you good'...it actually happened. How we were all actually stunned from Day One about the Germans themselves! On and off the pitch! How it was during when Germany and Argentina met each other in the quarters, it totally confirmed that I love to watch the Germans play. I became a converted fan along the group stages where Germany just keep surprising many of us. Suddenly for once, the History student (given actually, the Weimar times to the Nazi era to post-WWII Germany and yes, the Berlin Wall incident entered my history textbook) in me wants to sympathise them. Given I realised during the World Cup...the Nazi era is not their fault. If only those History classmates of mine back then can see it. Suddenly thinking at that time that it's a total mockery in glorifying the Nazi era. But then...what do we really know back then in class?
Suddenly also thinking Germany know how to enjoy themselves and feel good about it, all without the guilt! And it came from the former national coach himself (and one-time player for the then-West Germany side in World Cup 1990 which they won) - Jurgen Klinsmann. Hahaha. The sunny attitude he 'brought' from California, eh?
But...the semi-final encounter with (eventual champions) Italy stopped it all. Like a car came screeching to a halt. Very loudly. It landed all of us Germany's fans down to earth. And interestingly enough, I don't feel sad at England's exit the quarters...thanks to penalties (again). But the same reason was why Germany managed to edge past Argentina in the quarters. Setpieces and penalties - it's a German thing, honey! They are good at that. Sometimes it made me wonder secretly (given I am an England fan too, and so do my long-suffering father) - when will England ever learn? Germany may be one of their biggest football rivals, but just cast it all aside okay? Just learn how to do it.
Suddenly all the questions about Klinsmann's future with the national squad after the World Cup were being thrown into the spotlight after the semi-final loss. He had actually in the beginning, set out to be the second in the history of German football to be a World Cup-winning player (from the 1990 World Cup) and coach. Anyhow, he made all of us wait till after it was all over (by then, Germany was third in the play-off, France was the runner-up) before he said - he will step down. Personal reasons, we all can understand that. He has a family based in America too, and his two kids are still young. Secretly in our hearts, we don't want him to go. Secretly in the hearts of his own native countrymen, they don't want him to go just like that. All of us still want him to work his magic, which he had silenced his critics, in the Euro 2008. But just like the story of former South Korea's coach in the 2002 World Cup (the national squad went all the way to become third on home soil which they co-host with neighbours Japan), Dutchman Guus Hiddink (he is now with Russia's side) said that he wanted to move on.
On the day of German Unity, a movie-documentary about the German national team and their World Cup preparation and adventures was shown to good response. Aptly titled - 'Germany: A Summer Fairytale'. It was reported that it was filmed even way before the World Cup rolled along.
Just very much recently, Jurgen Klinsmann had spoken to US broadcaster ESPN that he will not take up the job of coaching the US national soccer team. His adoptive country. No clear reasons were given why, but an interim coach had stepped in. Actually, the US side had been courting their adoptive son even during the World Cup, or so the media reports were saying then.
It was clearly the stuff of fairytales for Germany during this World Cup. I want to think that in the years to come, I rather think that Germany is the winner of this World Cup. They may be third but, they showed that they are gracious hosts and, (indirectly, which all started with Jurgen Klinsmman) they can show that they know how to have some fun at the same time.
Clearly it removed any doubts that Germany is a very dour nation. It had all gone out of the window for me for good during the World Cup.
Will the fairytale still continue, at least till the Euro 2008? At the moment now, Germany's still doing okay en route to Austria and Switzerland.
Author's note: This will be the start of my series of what had been really rocking this year for me till before the New Year comes along. I became part of the newly-captivated crowd who love the German national team during the World Cup and it still continues after it ended.
