Azernews.Az

The remarks by top players of Germany`s soccer team made prior to facing Azerbaijan in a 2010 World Cup qualifier had inspired Azeri fans, though the home team lost 2-0, despite showing worthy resistance to one of Europe`s leading teams.
Bastian Schweinsteiger and Miroslav Klose scored a goal in each half, giving Germany a four-point lead in Group C.
A day before last Wednesday`s match played in Baku, German defender Per Mertesacker said: "It is challenging to score goals to the Azeri team, so, our job will be hard." Fans in Azerbaijan were then surprised by Germany captain Michael Ballack, who said "I know playing Azerbaijan will be hard." Further, the spirit of local fans was heightened by German team manager Oliver Bierhoff`s saying "we are aware that our rivals miss very few goals", in particular, after a 0:6 defeat in a June 9 friendly match with Spain.
Analysts say Azerbaijan`s 0:2 defeat had been anticipated. Mahir Rustamli, the editor of Football + newspaper, said Azerbaijan actually played well, but it lost again due to the lack of "a scoring leg."
"Our team played particularly well in the second half-time and deprived the opponent of chances to score goals. On the contrary, if we look at the goal situations, we stood better chances to score in the second half. Simply, there is a lack of experience. The biggest problem that has been facing Azerbaijani football in the past years is the absence of powerful forwards, and fixing it appears to be a daunting task."
Of note, Azerbaijan`s German coach Berti Vogts did not look like the defeated team`s senior coach after the game. He appeared satisfied with his team`s effort and was smiling.
"You saw an Azerbaijan that played well. My team played well, but couldn`t score. I do believe they will manage to do that in future games," said Vogts, who coached Germany to the European Championship title in 1996.
Vugar Nadirov, an Azerbaijan forward, has also provided his insight on the game.
"The guys did all they could on the pitch," he said. "We did everything in our power. But we will try to do better when we face Finland. We haven`t scored yet, but we will. Goals will happen all at once."
Germany coach Joachim Loew did not appear satisfed after the match despite his team`s victory.
"The task was to win, and we managed that," Loew said. "But Germany did not play at the highest level."
He noted that Azeri players were playing fast and took long-distance shots. "I had therefore asked my players to give it the best of their effort."

Fans indignant
The optimistic appearance of the Azeri team`s coach despite its failure to score in six consecutive games has riled local fans.
Sahib Aliyev, one of the fans, said he attends all matches played by the national team and, every time, he struggles with bitter disappoinment several days after the game.
"This game showed again that the Azeri team can`t play," Aliyev claimed. "They are paying a hefty salary to Vogts, but, instead, they could channel this money into children`s football, into building football schools. Since Vogts came, the team has backtracked further, instead of moving forward. A defending team can never think of scoring points, of winning."
Mahir Rustamli said the fans` harsh reaction to the coach and the national team is natural. As for Vogts` smiling after the match, the commentator said: "Simply put, yesterday`s game was a good one for Vogts. But such a smile should be backed up by victory over Finland, scored points in an away match with Liechtenstein and stunning Russia. If this does not happen, it seems to me that Vogts will bid farewell to the team. He will succumb to the pressure of both the public and AFFA [the Association of Football Federations of Azerbaijan]."
Azerbaijan, which currently has one point, trails in the group, along with Liechtenstein. It will play its next game at home with Finland on September 5.