Germany delight as Löw agrees new deal
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
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Joachim Löw expressed his excitement at the challenge ahead after signing a new contract as head coach of Germany. "This team is very capable of developing further," he said.
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Joachim Löw has extended his contract as Germany coach by two years to take him through UEFA EURO 2012 following his side's impressive third-place finish at the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
Löw took ten days to think about his future at the end of the tournament, but to the huge relief of the German Football Association (DFB) the popular coach has agreed to stay on. "Joachim Löw will continue his great work for the next two years," DFB president Dr Theo Zwanziger announced. "He fits this young team perfectly."
The next assignment for the 50-year-old will be to lead his promising young squad through qualifying for UEFA EURO 2012, where Germany face Turkey, Austria, Belgium, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan in Group A. Löw is looking forward to the challenge.
"I had to recharge for two or three days after the World Cup, but now a new phase begins," he said. "We have a tough qualifying group for the championship in Poland and Ukraine, but the working conditions at the DFB are perfect so we are looking forward to it. We have a lot of ideas on how to further develop this young team. There is a good foundation and we see a lot of potential. This team is very capable of developing further."
Löw took over from Jürgen Klinsmann four years ago following Germany's run to the 2006 World Cup semi-finals on home soil. Having stepped up from the role of Klinsmann's assistant, he guided Germany to the final of UEFA EURO 2008, then caught the eye again this summer as his exciting side swept to the semi-finals in South Africa.
Germany scored four goals three times, in victories against Australia, England and Argentina, en route to the last four where they lost 1-0 to eventual winners Spain in a repeat of the UEFA EURO 2008 final. They then beat Uruguay 3-2 in the third-place play-off in Port Elizabeth.
As well as Löw, general manager Oliver Bierhoff, assistant coach Hans-Dieter Flick and goalkeeping coach Andreas Köpke have also signed new two-year contracts with the DFB. Germany return to action with a friendly against Denmark in Copenhagen on 11 August before kicking off their UEFA EURO 2012 qualification bid against Belgium in Brussels on 3 September.
