Lehmann has eyes on EURO prize

Jens Lehmann says he is "completely focused" on Germany's UEFA EURO 2008™ campaign having resolved his club future by agreeing to join VfB Stuttgart on Tuesday.

Stuttgart move
The 38-year-old goalkeeper will join the Bundesliga club following the tournament in Switzerland and Austria, having spent time tying up the transfer before linking up with the Germany squad which travelled to Lugano yesterday. There were suggestions that Lehmann, who was released by Arsenal FC after five seasons with the London club, had been preoccupied during Germany's recent warm-up friendlies, though the keeper refutes that. "Naturally I'm completely focussed ahead of this great tournament," said Lehmann. "I would even say that I'm now more focussed than I was before the start of the [FIFA] World Cup in 2006. I had the loss in the Champions League final [of 2006 against FC Barcelona] at the back of my mind."

'Strong team'
Germany meet Poland in their Group B opener in Klagenfurt on Sunday, a side Lehmann says he has a lot of respect for. "We know Poland well," he said. "They've got a very strong team. But on the other hand there are only top teams in this tournament. There won't be any match that you can take it easy in. After the first round there will be one great team after another waiting for you. Everyone can beat everyone from that point."

Fleeting appearances
Lehmann featured just seven times in the Premier League and twice in the UEFA Champions League in 2007/08 having lost his first-team place to Manuel Almunia. However, rather than view this as a negative way to enter a final tournament, the former BV Borussia Dortmund custodian insists it could work to his advantage. "I've actually played about 20 matches altogether last season, which is not an insignificant number," he said. "On top of that, I played a lot against the best teams in the world. I prefer to see it as an advantage that I didn't have 50 matches. I'm feeling really fresh."

'Not concerned'
Lehmann is also positive about Germany's defence, which looked uncertain at times during last week's friendlies. "Germans like to worry but I'm not concerned at all about our defence," he added. "We had even poorer performances before the World Cup in 2006 and this year as well. "Right now I'm looking forward to the nervousness and the growing excitement. That usually hits me a day or so before a match. I was always at my best when I was a bit nervous. I think that's true for just about everyone."