Löw men set new high score

Four goals from Lukas Podolski and a record scoreline ensured Germany had "a lot of fun" in their 13-0 UEFA EURO 2008™ qualifying win in San Marino.

European record
Joachim Löw's side stormed to the top of Group D, keeping a third consecutive clean sheet since the coach replaced Jürgen Klinsmann. Having beaten the Republic of Ireland 1-0 on Saturday, Löw's men established a UEFA European Championship record 6-0 half-time lead in Serravalle before earning Germany's biggest victory since their 16-0 success against Russia at the 1912 Olympics. The final result bettered Spain's 12-1 defeat of Malta in qualifying for the 1984 finals.

'Good omen'
Having fielded the same lineup that started against Ireland, Löw was delighted to see his team show the European minnows no mercy. "We started with a good, professional attitude," he said. "You could see that the players wanted to have a lot of fun and enjoy their good performance. They never sat back and always wanted to score - a good omen for the tasks that lie ahead."

When, not whether
As with most David and Goliath ties, the question was always when, rather than whether, Germany would open their account. Podolski duly broke the deadlock after eleven minutes and the FC Bayern München marksman went on to become the first German player to score four goals in a European Championship game since the great Gerd Müller managed it against Albania in 1967. "We knew San Marino were the worst side we would face so we wanted to score a lot of goals," said the newly-crowned 'Prince Poldi'. "That's what we did."

Ballack happy
Germany next face Georgia in a Rostock friendly on 7 October before getting back to qualification business with a trip to more challenging Group D rivals Slovakia four days later. Captain Michael Ballack looked forward with confidence. "When you score 13 goals you have to be happy," said the Chelsea FC midfielder. "We were focused. We want to keep playing attacking football. It is important now that we steady the rest of our game."