Prinz leads German goal rush

Birgit Prinz led the way with a four-goal haul as world champions Germany strolled past Portugal in UEFA European Women's Championship Group 4 with an overwhelming 13-0 victory.

Capacity crowd
In their first game on home soil following their FIFA Women's World Cup triumph in the United States last month, Germany were watched by a capacity crowd in Reutlingen - as well as an estimated six million television viewers - and did not disappoint.

Fuss opener
Having scored twice against Scotland and also found the net against the Czech Republic, Prinz took her tournament tally to seven goals with her quartet of strikes. But the whole team, known as the 'Golden Girls' in their homeland, took the plaudits for a victory which looked certain once Sonja Fuss opened the scoring after just nine minutes.

Floodgates open
Defender Sandra Minnert doubled the home side's advantage on the half-hour mark but there were no further goals after a determined first-half display from the Portuguese. But the floodgates opened after the break, with Prinz grabbing her first goal almost immediately and Sandra Smisek, the 30-year-old midfield player, making it 4-0 six minutes later.

Hat-trick complete
Prinz had completed her hat-trick by the 63-minute mark and scored her fourth two minutes later - but only after Viola Oderbrecht had grabbed her first goal for the national team as the visitors' defence caved in.

Six points clear
Conny Pohlers scored twice either side of goals from Renate Lingor and Ariane Hingst to complete the win, the biggest in their history. Tina Theune-Meyer's side are now six points clear of second-placed Scotland in the group, having conceded just one goal in their four games so far.